On Sep 23, 5:08 pm, "James Silverton" >
wrote:
> Hello, All!
>
> I picked up a book by Masahara Morimotu (owner of restaurants in
> NYC and Philadelphia) in Borders today . He gave directions for
> preparing octopus for sashimi. This involves rubbing with rock
> salt to get rid of the slime that coats it, beating to tenderize
> ("traditionally with a large diakon"!), and simmering in dashi
> for 1 1/2 hours! It's not raw fish!
>
> James Silverton
> Potomac, Maryland
>
> E-mail, with obvious alterations:
> not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

I can only assume that this is a good preparation for FRESH octopus.
Since I cannot find the fresh product up here in New England, I am
forced to use frozen. My preparation gives excellent results, and the
octopus I buy typically runs about 4-5 lbs. About the only thing that
needs to be removed is the beak, the viscera are usually taken out
before freezing. Always buy a frozen octopus, this reduces the chance
of spoilage.

1. Put on a pot of water, about a gallon, and add a good sized piece
of kombu and about 2 oz of sea salt. Bring to a boil.
2. Thaw octopus in cold water, then drain well.
3. Knead the octopus with a large amount of fresh grated/chopped
daikon radish and sea salt. What this does is to clean off any slime,
and it also tightens the skin up just a bit. While doing that, turn
the head inside out and check for any leftover viscera. Remove any
that's found, then return the head sac to it's correct shape.
4. Using a fork, dunk the octopus into the boiling water a few times
untill the tentacles curl up. Lower the heat a bit, and then simmer
the octopus for about 5-10 minutes. After that turn the heat off and
cover the pot.
5. Let the octopus cool in the liquid for at least an hour, then into
the fridge the whole thing goes. Overnight is great if you can manage
it, it's the slow cooling that tenderizes it.Take it out of the water
and let it dry a bit. Slice, then serve as you like.

You'll probably find the skin around the head to be very tough. This
skin is better off discarded. The very top of the tentacles where they
conjoin into the head will probably also have a gelatinous layer right
under the skin that's not too edible either. Hope this helps anyone
who would like to cook one up.

Jim S.