Oxtapodia Octopus

LastJune 29th,Market Man of Manila posted on his wonderful food blog about Inihaw na Pusit - Grilled Squid

I asked him if octopus is popular in the Philippines as I could not even remember having such delicacy inspite the fact we lived near the coastline.


"Amazing you should ask! At the market last weekend they had several small octopus for sale but I didn’t know how to tell if they were fresh and how to cook them! Have any easy ideas? I see them occasionally in the markets, not that often…perhaps our reefs are not as hospitable as they used to be."



Octopus at Ouzeri Pireaus, Athens.

To answer Market Man of Manila how to tell if they are fresh, I suggest if you could hold and smell it, then its the best way. Octopus should smell like a sea... must have the aroma of salt water and if you look at the skin, it should glisten.

The photos above shows how the Greeks air dry the octopi (is that meant to be the plural of the word?) It has been probably been beaten against the rock to soften them.

Soon they will be grilled and slice thinly serve with lemon and olive oil.

I know there are many ways of preparing this food but I like the Greek way of either grilling or boiling them then marinated with olive oil and lemon.

How you do yours?