Author: Federico Rocca and Niccolò Rovarini
About: Federico Rocca and Niccolò Rovarini are life long friends and the owners of RIVA Fish Restaurant in Cape Town. Pictured here is Federico Rocca in the RIVA Fish Restaurant kitchen.
4
Medium
15 minutes, plus cooling time
40–60 minutes1. Dip the octopus’s tentacles into boiling water holding it by the head, moving it up and down 3–4 times to curl and soften the tentacles.
2. Bring the water salt, bay leaf and garlic to a boil in a large saucepan. Immerse the octopus in the water. Cook for approximately 40 minutes per kilogram, checking for tenderness by piercing a tentacle with a fork. It should be tender and easily pierced.
3. Turn off the heat and let the octopus cool in the cooking water to help it stay tender and flavourful.
4. Wash the spinach and dry it well. Heat 3 T olive oil in a large skillet over a medium heat. Add the spinach and cook, stirring frequently, until wilted and tender, about 3–5 minutes. Season with salt.
5. Once cooled, cut the octopus into bite-sized pieces. Toss with the lemon juice, remaining olive oil, parsley, salt and pepper. 6 Plate the spinach and arrange the octopus on top. Mix the paprika with the mayonnaise and serve with taralli or bread
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Photographer: Toby Murphy
Production: Khanya Mzongwana
