How to clean octopus

Fresh octopus should have firm flesh, have a marine fish smell, skin color brown, and the whites of the eyes should be transparent and white. It is recommended to purchase an octopus weighing up to a kilo, they have a more tender and soft meat.

Rinse the octopus under running water, loop through each of the tentacles, remove all the sand and dirt residues.

Cut the head just below the eyes, remove the tentacles, put them aside. Cut eye, using a knife, clean the cavity of the carcass. With the power squeeze the beak, cut it out and throw it away. The purified from the innards of the head rinse well inside and out.

Skin with fresh octopus is very difficult to remove. So the chefs often leave it until after heat treatment. If you still want to remove the skin, cook the octopus in water for 5-10 minutes, cool it and then remove the skin with cold carcasses.

Now octopus can be cooked or frozen for storage. Experienced cooks recommend to always freeze the carcass of the octopus before cookingit significantly softens the tough muscle meat. Put the cleaned octopus in the freezer and leave at least a day, but better for 2-3 days. The water contained in the muscle structure of an octopusturning into ice will expand, tearing the nerves and hard fibers. To defrost the octopus, it is enough to place in the refrigerator for 6-10 hours.

From octopus you can cook huge amount of food. This meat is perfect with onions, garlic, tomatoes, lemon, olive oil, rice wine and soy sauce. The octopus is not only good in salads, it's great as a main dish. For example, try to cook skewers of octopus or stewed it in red wine.