Lukewarm octopus pieces with burrata cheese and a cherry and balsamic vinegar dressing

Recipe for 4 persons

Time: around 2 hours

Ingredients for the octopus

800g octopus
2 tsp olive oil
1 bayleaf
30g parsley with stems
½ onion
1 clove of garlic
1 pinch of Espelette pepper
20g Mesclun salad mix

Ingredients for the balsamic vinegar

12 Cherries
15ml raspberry vinegar
18g sugar
250ml beet juice
25ml cherry or balsamic vinegar
150g burrata
20ml cream

Instructions

Wash octopus in running water. Then add olive oil to large pot. Add octopus, bayleaf, parsley with stems, onion and clove of garlic. Cover and simmer on medium heat for around 90 minutes, lightly stirring repeatedly to prevent ingredients from sticking without adding liquid.

Combine beet juice, raspberry and cherry vinegar in a pot, add sugar, bring to a boil, and reduce liquid to around 100 ml. Add pitted cherries, cover, and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes on low.

Combine burrata and cream and whisk with a hand blender, adding salt if desired.

Sear octopus briefly, sprinkle with parsley and Espelette pepper, remove from pan and set aside.

Tip: An octopus is cooked through if the tentacles are tender.

Leave in a closed pot to temper, then wash the tentacles and suckers.

Serving

Put burrata cream on a plate, add 5 pieces of octopus, pour over the cherries and a dash of extra virgin olive oil. Finally garnish with the salad leaves.