Harissa Glazed Octopus

Chef Jenny Goycochea

Harissa Glazed Spanish Octopus

By Jenny Goycochea  |  serving size 8

The San Diego native, Jenny Goycochea broke into the restaurant industry prepping for a catering company. She soon after took her first restaurant job at Urban Solace in San Diego’s North Park area. She continued honing her skills working at top San Diego restaurants including Quality Social, Flavor Del Mar, JSix and Stone Brewing Company before taking the roll as Chef de Cuisine at Tasting Room Del Mar. Currently Chef Jenny is working at Kettner Exchange in San Diego’s Little Italy under Chef Brain Redzikowski.

INSPIRATION

“My family comes from Spain, so for this dish I wanted to use flavors that are reminiscent from that area of the world.”

–  Jenny Goycochea


Octopus

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 ea. ChefsWarehouse® FAO 34 Spanish Octopus, beak and insides of head removed
  • 1/3 cup Kosher Salt
  • 4 qt. Chicken Stock
  • 2 cup White Wine
  • 1 head Garlic, cut in half
  • 8 cloves Garlic
  • 1 cup California Olive Oil
  • 1 tbsp. Peppercorns

DIRECTIONS

  1. Start with your octopus in a large bowl. Sprinkle with kosher salt and gently massage the octopus for 10-15 minutes until foamy. Rinse octopus and set aside.
  2. Heat chicken stock, wine and gatrlic in a stock pot until simmering. Gently lower the octopus into the pot and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the octopus and place into an ice bath until cool.
  3. Remove the legs of the octopus and place into sous vide bags with olive oil, smashed garlic gloves, and peppercorns. Set a water circulator to 73˚C and cook for 6 hours. Remove from the water circulator into an ice bath and cool before storing in the refrigerator until ready to use.


Crispy Octopus ‘Calamari’

INGREDIENTS

DIRECTIONS

  1. Soak octopus head in buttermilk and hot sauce overnight.
  2. Mix flour together with spices and salt. Toss octopus head pieces with the flour.
  3. Heat oil to 350˚F. Fry octopus pieces until golden and crispy.


Harissa Paste

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 ea. Ancho Chilies, dried
  • 16 ea. Guajiro Chilies, dried
  • 3 ea. Morita Chilies, dried
  • 8 ea. Chile de Arbol, dried
  • 6 cloves Garlic
  • 1 tsp. Cumin Seeds
  • 1 tsp. McCormick® Coriander Seeds
  • 1 tsp. Caraway Seeds
  • ¼ cup Olive Oil
  • ¼ cup Sherry Vinegar
  • tt. Salt

DIRECTIONS

  1. Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add dried chilies and turn off heat. Let chilies steep and soften for 20-30 minutes. Reserve 1/3 cup of steeping water.
  2. In a small skillet, toast whole spices until fragrant, remove from heat.
  3. Place soaked chilies, spices and remaining ingredients in a blender. Blend until smooth using steeping water as necessary to thin mixture until very smooth and blended. Should be a smooth paste.



Chermoula

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 bunch Cilantro, stems removed
  • 1 bunch Italian Parsley, stems removed
  • 2 cloves Garlic
  • 1 tsp. Cumin Seeds
  • 1 tsp. McCormick® Coriander Seeds
  • 1 ea. Meyer Lemon, zest and juice
  • ½ cup Olive Oil
  • ¼ cup Water
  • Salt and Pepper

DIRECTIONS

  1. Place all ingredients in a blender (except water), blend until smooth, using water as necessary to thin sauce.


Crispy Potatoes

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 lbs. Alaskan Fingerling Potatoes
  • 2 cup Duck Fat
  • 2 heads Garlic, cut in half
  • 5 sprigs Thyme
  • 2 tbsp. Kosher Salt
  • 1 ea. Meyer Lemon, peel only
  • Oil for frying

DIRECTIONS

  1. Place potatoes in a small baking dish (a ½ pan works great). Cover with duck fat. Add salt, garlic, thyme and lemon peel and cover. Bake at 350˚F until tender. Cool.
  2. Heat oil to 350˚F. Break potatoes into large pieces and fry until crispy. Season with salt and pepper.


Smoked Paprila Aioli

INGREDIENTS

  • ½ cup Mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp. McCormick® Smoked Paprika
  • 1 tsp. Harissa paste
  • 2 cloves Garlic, minced finely
  • 1 ea. Meyer Lemon, juiced
  • Salt and Pepper

DIRECTIONS

  1. Mix all ingredients together until smooth.



TO ASSEMBLE

  1. Heat a medium sized cast iron skillet until warm. Heat 1 tsp high smoke point oil.
  2. Place the octopus legs in the cast iron and sear until brown on each side.
  3. Toss with 1 tablespoon of Harissa paste mixed with 2 tablespoons chicken stock and 1 tablespoon salted butter until evenly coated.
  4. Serve with chermoula, octopus head ‘Calamari’, crispy potatoes and smoked paprika aioli.
  5. Garnish with fresh origins micro celery gold splash.