How to Cook Octopus Like a Chef – The Italian Way | Tender & Flavorful

Learn how to cook octopus like a chef, the Italian way. In this video, I show you how simple it is to prepare tender, flavorful octopus at home, along with a refreshing zucchini salad (insalata di zucchina). Both dishes are light, Mediterranean, and perfect for summer.

We’ll start by simmering the octopus gently with wine, celery, carrot, and bay leaf for flavor, before pressing it into a beautiful salami-style shape. Alongside, I prepare a quick zucchini salad with basil, mint, garlic, and balsamic vinaigrette — the perfect side dish to serve with octopus.

Whether you’ve never tried cooking octopus before, or you’re looking for an authentic Mediterranean method, this recipe is simple, affordable, and full of flavor.

🐙 Octopus Recipe
1 octopus (approx. 600 g)
1/3 glass dry white wine
1 carrot, chopped
1 celery stick, chopped
1 bay leaf
Black pepper (pinch)
Salt (pinch)

Marinade:
1 medium lemon (juice)
Equal amount olive oil
Fresh parsley, chopped (reserve some for garnish)
A drizzle balsamic vinegar (or other vinegar, optional)
Pinch of salt and pepper

Method:
Prepare a stock with carrot, celery, bay leaf, pepper, salt, and wine.
Rinse octopus and immerse in boiling water, dipping 4–5 times until tentacles curl. Simmer on medium-low for 20 minutes. Switch off and let cool in liquid for 20 more.

Make marinade with lemon, olive oil, parsley, vinegar, salt, pepper. Chill in fridge.

Slice octopus into pieces and pack tightly into a small plastic bottle. Cut and fold the edges, then wrap with cling film. Refrigerate 4–5 hours (or overnight). Slice like salami to serve, garnish with parsley and lemon.

🥒 Zucchini Salad Recipe
2 medium zucchini (courgettes), cut into strips
Fresh mint leaves, chopped
Fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
Drizzle of balsamic vinegar (or other vinegar)
Pinch of salt and pepper

Method:
Boil zucchini strips in unsalted water for 4 minutes. Drain well and press gently to remove excess water.

Prepare vinaigrette in a jar: mint, basil, garlic, olive oil, balsamic, salt, pepper. Shake well. Add vinaigrette to warm zucchini, mix, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

00:00 Introduction – Octopus in Mediterranean cooking
00:31 Ingredients and preparing the stock
01:52 Cooking and tenderising the octopus
03:18 Making the lemon and parsley marinade
04:59 Zucchini salad (insalata di zucchina) with balsamic vinaigrette
09:06 Shaping, slicing, and serving the octopus

#octopusrecipe #italiancooking #seafoodrecipe #zucchinisalad #mediterraneancooking #howtocookoctopus #tortellinotime #tortellino

In most Mediterranean countries—Italy, Spain, 
even Portugal or Greece—octopus is absolutely one of those things that they adore, and I’m 
not sure why. Outside of Mediterranean areas, it is not widely consumed, but I hope that today 
I’m going to show you how easy it is to cook, but also how delicious it can 
be if you cook it properly. So let’s run through the ingredients first, 
and this is really simple. Of course, some hot water going on a pan, yeah, and I 
will be making a little stock. Today I will be using a little white wine, not 
a lot, just under one third of a glass. I’ve got a little carrot, some celery, 
a bay leaf, some pepper, and an octopus. This octopus weighs just under 600 grammes. I 
bought it from Lidl. They’re not very easy to get hold of in the UK. Again, I’m not sure 
why—most probably because it’s not widely consumed. Just to give you an indication of 
cost, this weighs just under 600 grammes, 588, as you’ll be able to see with the camera, and 
it cost me £7.64. So it’s not too prohibitive as far as a meal goes, and actually, if cooked 
properly, you can get really good value for money. I will be making a marinade, and the 
marinade will consist of some lemon, olive oil, a little balsamic vinegar, 
and parsley. So, as I said, it’s very, very simple. Let’s start cooking, 
and I’ll show you how simple it is. I’ll start by flavouring my water by making 
a little stock. The carrot goes in. I’ve also got a celery stick which I’ve washed, so I’ll 
break this into little pieces and I’ll push it in with the water. The bay leaf also goes in, 
plus some black pepper, just a little pinch, followed by a little pinch of 
salt, and my dry white wine. I’ve removed the octopus from the 
packaging. This is what it looks like, and I’ll just give it a quick rinse 
under water. The water is boiling, I’m now immersing my octopus inside. As 
soon as it goes in, the tentacles start curling. So in it goes, and out it goes, a few 
times. I’ll do this about four or five times. By the way, my mom in Sicily, when she 
used to cook this, even if she managed to get hold of fresh octopus, she would freeze 
it for at least 48 hours, then defrost it, and then cook it. You will find if you do 
that it will be considerably more tender. Water is boiling. I’ll turn it down to medium-low, 
place the lid on, and leave it to cook for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, I’ll turn the heat 
off completely, but I’ll leave it on the hob and let it gently cool down for a further 20 
minutes, the same amount as the cooking time. Now, my octopus weighs just under 600 grammes. 
The general rule is that for an octopus which weighs one kilo, you cook it for half an hour 
and then you leave it to cool down gently for another half an hour. That will ensure that 
it becomes lovely and tender. In my case, I’m going for 20 minutes because I’ve got lots 
of other ingredients in there—the carrots, the celery, and also the wine. I 
want to make sure that all of those flavours totally enrich my octopus. 
So, 40 minutes altogether. I’m happy. In the meantime, I’ll show you what I’ll do 
with the marinade, and this is really simple. I’m making it now so that I can place 
it in the fridge and it will marinate beautifully. I’ll start with one lemon. This is 
a medium-sized lemon, and I’ll just squeeze it. I’m using lemon as it is really refreshing and 
it provides a nice zesty taste to the marinade. Olive oil next—quantities to taste, but I 
will be adding more or less the same amount as lemon. This is fresh parsley. I will reserve 
a little for later so that I can garnish on top, but I’ll chop the rest in little pieces and 
add it. A little balsamic vinegar—this is something I add as I love balsamic vinegar, but 
you can skip it if you like. Or you can also add white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar, 
cider vinegar, or no vinegar at all. I’ll finish with just a little amount of 
salt because I’ve already salted the octopus, and also some pepper. Mix it all together. 
I’ll put the lid back on so that it stops any odours escaping, and that will 
go in the fridge ready for later. I will be slicing the octopus just 
like salame. I’m building a very high-tech kitchen tool to do that—actually a 
plastic bottle, which I think was from tonic water. You can use any plastic bottle 
of course. I’m using a smaller bottle, because presentationally it makes a difference. 
If I used a big two-litre bottle, bear in mind my octopus is small, it would disappear 
inside. If you’ve got a larger octopus, or you’re cooking more than one, ensure you 
get a larger bottle as you’ll need more space. While I wait, I will move on to my insalata 
di zucchina. I’ll do a couple of zucchini, or courgettes depending where you are in the 
world. I’ll remove the bottom and the head, cut in half, and now slice each half 
in approximately one centimetre slices. Then I turn them and cut them into strips. It was a little bit cooler when I got into 
the kitchen earlier, but it’s warming up, so I’m going to remove my little jacket. That’s 
better. I’m in my log cabin in the garden, by the way, and the heat from the 
hob is also warming up the room. I’ve got some water which 
has reached boiling point, and very simply I’ll just pick up all 
of my zucchini and add them in. Whoops, one has gone on the floor. I’m going to get 
it. There, quick rinse under water, in it goes. You can choose to salt your water if you want 
to. I’m not going to, because I’m trying to keep the salt intake as little as possible, and 
ultimately I will be salting the vinaigrette I’m about to make. Be careful with salt. Lots 
of people salt water, salt everything, but as Julie often tells me, too much salt is no good and 
you need to be careful with your blood pressure. I will leave my zucchini to boil for exactly 
four minutes, which is the perfect amount of time I need to make my vinaigrette. This is 
a glass jar from marmalade or jam—whatever you might have available. I’ll start with 
some mint. I have removed the stems and I’m only using the leaves. I’ll chop them into the 
jar. This is fresh basil, literally two minutes ago it was attached to the plant. Julie just 
picked it for me, and I’ll add it to the mint. Garlic next. I’m looking for something 
medium-sized. I just remove the skin and slice it in tiny little pieces, approximately one 
millimetre. Olive oil next. I’ll pour in enough to marinate my zucchine—about two tablespoons. Again, 
balsamic vinegar, or any vinegar if you like, or no vinegar at all, but I will be using 
balsamic today. Just a little drizzle. Here comes my salt, as I mentioned earlier. 
A pinch of salt, followed by a little pepper. This is also ready. I’ll place the lid on, give 
it a good shake, and place it in the fridge. My zucchini are done. I’ll place a clean 
cloth on my worktop and fish them out using a little strainer. Get rid of as much 
water as you can so you don’t make a mess, and place them on the cloth. Perfect. 
I’ll spread them a little so they cool down quicker. After a couple 
of minutes, I’ll strain them. Here we are. I’ll put them together like this, 
applying a little pressure so that any water left over can go into the saucepan. You can see 
there’s quite a lot there, so ensure you drain as much as possible. But be careful not to break your 
zucchini. You want them to retain their shape. So, I’ve got a little serving dish. 
I’ll move my zucchini in there and open them up. Back to my marinade—it’s 
only been in the fridge a few minutes, but that’s good enough. I can now add 
it to the zucchini. Do this while the zucchini are still warm so that the flavour 
from the vinegar really infuses beautifully. You can eat them straight away if 
you like, but my advice is to put some cling film on top and place them in 
the fridge for at least a couple of hours. They will cool down, and the flavours will 
continue infusing. They will taste better. So I’ll put them in the fridge and finish with the 
octopus next. It has been sitting there quietly, waiting patiently for about half an 
hour. I’ll remove it from the water. One thing I should say—if you want, 
you can chop this into little pieces, add a little salt, pepper, maybe 
a little vinegar and olive oil, and just eat it as it is. It’s really, really 
delicious. But I’m doing something else today. I’ll start chopping it, leaving each tentacle 
in large pieces. I’ll cut them lengthwise. It’s still a little hot, but bearable. I 
will also use the head, but remember to remove the black part inside so you don’t end 
up with anything unpleasant. This was cleaned, but if you buy it from the counter, 
do ask your fishmonger to clean it. Here is my plastic bottle. I’ll 
start adding the tentacles inside, positioning them so there are as few gaps 
as possible. Before I get to the end, I’ll add all my little bits, finish with 
a few tentacles on top, and press it down. You can see why a small bottle is plenty. Next, 
I’ll cut the bottle—six cuts—and fold each piece inward, applying pressure against the octopus. 
I’ll turn it upside down and get some cling film. Some people use a glass or even a stone 
on top, but I find cling film works really well, and I’ll show you why. I’ll just wrap it tightly. 
This will make the octopus bond together. This is what it looks like. I’ll place it 
in the fridge—not the freezer—for four to five hours until we’re ready to eat 
later. Depending on the size of the bottle and how much you’re doing, 
it might need to be there longer, or ideally overnight. See you in about 
five hours once this is nice and compact. I had to look it up—the word is fishmonger, 
not fisherman as I called it. The equivalent in Italian, by the way, is pescheria or 
pesci vendolo. Pesci stands for fish, vendolo is somebody who sells. So, fish 
vendor. There you go, a little Italian lesson. I’ve got this out of the fridge. It’s been in 
there five hours. I’m trying to see if I can peel it off just using my fingers, but I might 
have to use scissors after all. Yes, scissors are safer and make sure I don’t spoil my 
beautiful octopus sausage. It should come out quite easily. Let’s 
have a look. Oh, there it is. With a sharp knife, I’ll slice it just like 
salami. Now I’m arranging it in my serving dish, using any loose bits for infilling. Back to my 
zucchini salad, I’ll place it in the middle. You’ll recall I reserved a little parsley 
for decoration. I’ll sprinkle it on top of everything—the octopus and the salad. 
I’ve sliced a lemon and I’m now adding it around the edge of the plate for decoration. It 
looks absolutely magnificent, and it is ready. You can leave it to marinate 
a little longer if you like, or eat it straight away. It doesn’t make 
much difference. It’s beautiful, tender, and really delicious. It’s amazing the difference 
it makes when you leave things to marinate. I’ll just try the zucchini… Perfetta! 
Make it and let me know how you get on. It’s absolutely beautiful. Honestly, they are 
really refreshing, easy things to do during the summer. I hope you are enjoying these 
little dishes, and if you are, let me know. Arrivederci, grazie, and buon appetito. Ciao.