Octopus, smoked potato, and borage chlorophyll | Davide Cannavino

Ingredients for 4 people

• 1 live octopus weighing 2 kg
• 800 g potatoes
• 3 bunches of borage
• 1 red onion
• 100 g pitted Taggiasca olives
• 1 chili pepper
• 200 g raspberry vinegar
• 1 clove of Vessalico garlic
• Dried aromatic herb leaves (sage, rosemary, bay leaves)
• 1 bunch of hay
• Oil, salt, and pepper to taste

Procedure

Clean the octopus and cook it without water in a pot with a lid for about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Boil the potatoes, clean them, and smoke them whole in an old pot with hay and dried aromatic herb leaves (sage, rosemary, bay leaves) for the desired time (we recommend 4 minutes, or continue depending on the desired intensity of the smoke).

Mash the potatoes and add a clove of minced garlic, oil, salt, and pepper.

Clean the bunches of borage, wash them, and blanch them for a few seconds. Cool in ice water, blend, and strain through a sieve.

Marinate the olives in chili pepper. Cut the red onion into four pieces, bring 200 g of raspberry vinegar to a boil and immerse the onion pieces in it. They will be ready once cooled.

Dish composition

Prepare some quenelles of mashed potatoes, place the octopus on top, add a few drops of borage chlorophyll, the olives and the onion in vinegar.

The photographs are by Francesco Zoppi.