Frozen Octopus or fresh Octopus for recipes?

Frozen Octopus or fresh Octopus for recipes? - Top view of table served with palatable Asian dishes of octopus tentacle and gyozas dumplings with wine and soy sauce

Yeah, I wonder with grilled, fried, steamed, salad recipe, which is better?

Frozen Octopus or fresh Octopus

Can you compare Frozen Octopus and fresh Octopus, which recipes for which? Thank you so much, sorry for my bad english.



Best Answer

This is my favorite reference for octopus. Near the end, Harold McGee considers the fresh v. frozen octopus debate. His results are not exactly conclusive. McGee found fresh octopus, lightly blanched, to be "sweetly scallop-like and not too chewy. But cooking it turned it bouncier than ever." His conclusion: "Freshness isn't the key to relevatory octopus." So, based on my reading, if your preparation only requires a light blanching and thin slices, go with fresh. Otherwise, you are better off considering the cooking technique as the most important variable.




Pictures about "Frozen Octopus or fresh Octopus for recipes?"

Frozen Octopus or fresh Octopus for recipes? - Served table with delicious food
Frozen Octopus or fresh Octopus for recipes? - Table served for guests on terrace
Frozen Octopus or fresh Octopus for recipes? - A Person Holding a Small Octopus



Is fresh or frozen octopus better?

It might be surprising, but frozen octopus is better than a fresh octopus. The process doesn't change the flavor, on top of that, it breaks the fibers which make it more tender.

Is frozen octopus already cooked?

If you buy frozen or chilled octopus, it's already clean, so you only have to prepare it at home. If instead of raw, you buy it already precooked, it will be ready to eat or ready to use in your recipes.

How do you cook frozen raw octopus?

Place the octopus in a large pot covered with any braising liquid, from water to red wine. Alternatively, place the octopus in a dry pot and allow the fish to cook in its own juices. In either case, place the pot in an oven preheated to 200 degrees F and braise the meat for four or five hours.

Is frozen octopus already cleaned?

Note: Frozen octopuses are cleaned from the entrails, so the only thing you need to do do is remove the beak and the lower part of the sac.



How to prepare frozen octopus for consumption?




More answers regarding frozen Octopus or fresh Octopus for recipes?

Answer 2

After catching and cleaning them, I usually freeze them.

One day in the freezer is enough to break some of the tissues, which helps making it much softer.

Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Images: Rachel Claire, Rachel Claire, Rachel Claire, Kindel Media