Name: Rice with octopus
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Portuguese
Ingredients: 800 g Octopus; 340 g Carolino Rice; 2 un Onion; 2 un Tomato; 200 g Bell Pepper; 3 dentes Garlic; 50 ml Olive Oil; 2 folhas Bay Leaf; 1 molho Coriander; 2 c/ch Salt

Method

Cook the octopus in 1.5 litres of water with a whole onion and the bay leaves, about 40 minutes over medium heat, until a fork slides into the thick part of a tentacle without resistance. Cut it into pieces and keep the cooking water.
Gently sauté the second onion, the garlic, the skinned tomatoes and the pepper, all chopped, in the olive oil over low heat for about 10 minutes, until the tomato breaks down.
Add the carolino rice and stir it through for 2 minutes, until the grains turn translucent and glossy with oil.
Pour in 1.2 litres of the boiling octopus cooking water, and cook uncovered over medium heat for 12 to 14 minutes, stirring now and then; top up with more hot water if it dries out, as the rice should stay soupy.
Add the octopus, warm it through for 2 minutes, adjust the salt, finish with the chopped coriander and serve immediately while the rice is still loose and soupy.