Let’s pretend that we’re at a Spanish restaurant with tonight’s dinner. On the menu: pulpo, chorizo y maiz. You needn’t travel much to capture the tastes and flavors of this Spanish-inspired dish. The chorizo is consistent throughout, tantalizing your taste buds with its salty, smoked paprika flavor. A gentle poach and light grill of the octopus transports you to an outdoor Mediterranean experience. The sweet corn is as summery as it gets. Buen provecho!

Octopus with Potatoes & Chorizo and Sweet Corn, Red Onions, and Calabrian Chili

Yields 4 – 6

Ingredients:

For the octopus:

• 1 – 17.5 oz pack of frozen octopus, cleaned and thawed (should be 3 small octopi) 
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 2 lemons, halved
• 3 cloves of garlic, halved
• 4 thyme sprigs

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 sprig of thyme

For the potatoes and chorizo:

• 2 medium white potatoes, thinly sliced using a mandolin (potato chip thin)
• 4 tablespoons of butter, melted + 1 tablespoon butter
• 3 oz sliced chorizo, finely minced
• 2 calabrian chilis, seeded, minced
• salt to taste

For the sweet corn, red onions, and calabrian chili:

• 2 corn on the cob, kernels cut off
• 3 tablespoons red onion, small dice
• 1 calabrian chili, seeded, minced

Instructions:

For the octopus:

1. In a large pot, add octopus, vinegar, lemon, garlic, thyme, and approximately 12 cups of water. 
2. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and gently poach uncovered for 25 minutes.
3. Remove octopus from poaching liquid and set aside. Discard the poaching liquid. 
4. Cut off the head of the octopus and thinly slice into circle shapes. Cut each octopus in half. 
5. In a cast iron skillet, add 1 tablespoon of butter and a sprig of thyme. Grill octopus until slightly charred. Set aside.

For the potatoes and chorizo:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter and set aside. 
2. Using a mandolin, thinly slice the potatoes and immediately add to a prepared large bowl of cold water to prevent discoloration. (Note: potatoes should potato chip thin)
3. In a small cast iron skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and saute minced chorizo and calabrian chili until slightly crisp. Remove from the skillet and set aside. 
4. Strain thinly sliced potatoes. 
5. In the same small skillet where chorizo was cooked, add 1 tablespoon of melted butter over medium heat. Brush butter all over the skillet using a pastry brush.
6. Begin layering potato slices starting from the outside, ending in the center. Add a second layer of potatoes. Brush generously with melted butter and season lightly with salt.   
7. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of crisped chorizo and add two more layers of potato slices. Brush generously with melted butter and season lightly with salt. 
8. Repeat the process of two layers of potato slices to 1 tablespoon of crisped chorizo, ending with a layer of potatoes.
9. Cut out a piece of parchment paper and aluminum foil to fit over the skillet. Brush one side of the parchment paper with melted butter and place over the skillet with potatoes, butter side touching potatoes. 
10. Wrap aluminum foil tightly over the parchment paper and place the skillet into a sheet pan. Place the sheet pan with the skillet to the oven and cook for 15 minutes.
11. After 15 minutes, uncover the skillet, rotate sheet pan and cook for another 15 minutes.
12. Change the temperature of the oven to broil. Broil the potatoes until golden, rotating every 30 seconds for an even color. 

For the sweet corn, red onions, and calabrian chili:

1. Cut corn in half. Place the one half of the corn right side up and shave off the kernels. Discard cob. 
2. In a saute pan, add butter, corn, red onions, and calabrian chili. Gently toss to combine all of the ingredients. 
3. Cover and cook without stirring for 5 minutes. 
4. Uncover and gently stir. Season lightly with salt. Cover again and cook again for approximately 3 – 5 minutes, until corn is slightly charred.