I’ve wanted for sometime now to post a video on cooking and health tips but also on how to make some of my favorite recipes.

I’ve taken so long because I don’t know too much about this whole thing and also I don’t want to put up something stupid but I do know that once I start posting videos it’s going to need some upkeep; perhaps not every week, but definitely once or twice a month to start out.

I’m sure there will be room for improvement but I hope that you enjoy the videos and find them helpful yet fun and easy to follow.

Alright, so let’s get to what I decided to post as my first video and why?

I chose Octopus because it’s one of the most popular things to eat in Italy. It’s always served simple yet it’s one of those things that you want to see how it’s cooked before you attempt to do it yourself. It’s not hard but reading how to cook it vs. visualizing it is so different. It simplifies any questions one might have.

I love Octopus. I know what you are thinking and you are right. Had I not grown up in Italy and tasted this and how delicious it is you probably couldn’t get me to try it out now. But, then again my Husband didn’t grow up eating it and he loves it so who knows.

It’s almost the same texture as lobster or shrimp and pretty much similar in taste.

Make sure that your Octopus is cleaned already. Here in Italy that’s the way they are sold most of the time. However, the cleaning is easy you need to cut off the eyes, teeth and remove the ink sack, then rinse really well under the water to remove any sand.

The general rule of thumb in cooking it is approx. 20 minutes per 500gr. (I got 1 kilo so 40 minutes) you want to make sure that the water is boiling before you put your Octopus in and then put on the lid and lower flame to a minimum for the full cooking time.

Some say to salt the water others believe that you shouldn’t and because there are so many mixed feelings I’ve decided that I don’t add salt to mine and only in the end when I’m dressing it. Works out perfectly.

Follow the steps in the video for cooking the Octopus. I’ll list here what you’ll need.

• Octopus
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Some Fresh Chopped Parsley
• Juice of ½ a Lemon (optional)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Add so boiled Potatoes to complete the dish (optional)