Purple octopus on green potatoes

Moringa – let’s discover this superfood! Moringa oleifera is native to Eastern India and can grow and resist in prohibitive drought conditions by adapting to terrain with different pH levels, retaining liquids and nutrients if water is scarce. It lives and develops in Africa without problems, where it is classified among the longest-lived trees. 

All parts of the moringa are edible, nothing is thrown away, which is why it is considered a miraculous tree. Besides being a concentrate of vitamins and minerals, it is rich in antioxidants, including polyphenols that fight cellular ageing by counteracting free radicals. 

Clean the fresh octopus by removing the eyes and the central beak and emptying the sac. Wash it very well under running water, let it drip and dab it well with kitchen paper. 

Insert the octopus into a cooking bag with a slice of lime and the mirepoix (coarsely chopped carrot, celery and onion) and seal. 

Set the roner to 82°C and once the temperature has been reached, let it cook for 3 hours. In the meantime, organise the green potato cream (see fast potatoes recipe). Once the cooking cycle is completed, immerse the bag in water and ice to lower the temperature and preserve the octopus, ready to be eaten. 

N.B.: if you have more time available, you can opt for longer low temperature cooking at 72°C for 10 hours. You will ask yourselves why? What’s the difference? Everything and nothing. “Nothing” because the softness and consistency will always be excellent. “Everything” because we will be able to preserve the colour and integrity of the skin with low temperatures. 

Once the potatoes are cooked, remove the peel and while they are still hot, mash them with a potato masher or with the tines of a fork for a coarser result. Mix well and add ½ cup of hot water or more to achieve the desired consistency. For an even more creamy and velvety effect you can process the mixture in the hand blender. Then let the cream cool and add the moringa powder, which will convey this splendid green colour to the potatoes as well as increase the beneficial properties of this dish. 

N.B. we do not use moringa at high temperatures because the antioxidant properties would reduce significantly. 

Once cooked, the octopus can be stored in the fridge for 10 days.