Baby Octopus Salad with Mango Salsa

Baby octopus salad is an exciting appetizer for kicking start a dinner party or makes a perfect lunch to enjoy your own. The baby octopus are marinated with a mixture of garlic, coconut sugar, 5-spice powder, lime juice and red chilli pepper, then cooked to perfectly tender and served with a fresh mango salsa and greens / herbs. If you're using frozen octopus, it will need to thaw in the refrigerator overnight, so plan ahead. I cooked them in a grill pan, and they turned out great. Chargrill them if you could.

Mango Salsa	Salad
1 Large ripe mango, peeled, chopped 1/2 Red onion, finely chopped 1 Red chilli pepper, seeds removed, finely chopped 1 tbsp Chopped coriander 1 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil Juice of 1 lime, or to taste Salt and pepper	2 Garlic cloves, crushed 1 tsp Coconut sugar 1 tsp Five-spice powder Juice of 1 lime 1 Small red chilli pepper, finely chopped Freshly milled black pepper 750 g Baby octopus, cleaned (if frozen, let the octopus thaw overnight in the fridge) Juice of 1 lemon (or lime) Salad greens and herbs (baby arugula, mint and cilantro)

Allow the octopus to defrost overnight in the refrigerator if using the frozen one.
Place the crushed garlic, coconut sugar, five-spice, lime juice, chilli and a little pepper in a bowl and stir to combine. Add octopus and stir well until evenly coated.
For the salsa, combine mango, red onion, chilli, coriander, oil, lime juice and some salt and pepper in a bowl. Set aside.
Heat a grill pan on medium-high heat. Cook octopus, in batches if necessary, for 2 minutes, turning, until tender and charred all over. Transfer to a bowl and squeeze over the lemon.
Arrange salad greens and herbs and octopus on plates, then top with the mango salsa. Garnish with extra chilli rings if desired.

33 comments:

Brian's Home Blog 20/8/22 00:42: Hmmm, I'm not too sure about the octopus but I'd have to try it!
Tom 20/8/22 01:51: ...I'm not sure about this one, how about some chicken?
J.P. Alexander 20/8/22 03:05: Gracias por la receta , tengo ganas de probarla. Te mando un beso.
My name is Erika. 20/8/22 03:05: I've never seen octopus for sale, and I'm not sure about eating them. Even though I like calimari (squid). Happy weekend. hugs-Erika
Balvinder 20/8/22 03:16: I tried octopus in a restaurant long time ago and I quite liked it. The salad looks very appealing to me.
Christine 20/8/22 05:32: I would try that
Margaret D 20/8/22 06:29: Looks good.
Kitchen Riffs 20/8/22 06:37: I don't think I've ever had mango paired with octopus. Sounds like a delightful combo! Thanks.
Happy Retiree's Kitchen 20/8/22 10:30: We ate Thai style baby octopus last night for entree and it was delicious. I can't wait to try this recipe in our Summer when we have mangoes. Wonderful recipe and beautiful photos, thanks Angie.
eileeninmd 20/8/22 12:21: Hello Angie,
Your salad looks so colorful and pretty. I have never tried octopus. Looks delicious, thanks for sharing the recipe. Take care, have a great weekend.
DEZMOND 20/8/22 13:07: OMG you ate baby octopus??? Oh, how could you, poor octopuppy baby! I love the green plate in the first photo.
Chef Mimi 20/8/22 15:26: Oh how I love baby octopus! And what you’ve done with it here is absolutely fabulous!
Mbul Kecil 20/8/22 19:48: thanks for a new recipe with main ingredient baby octopus

i usually eat them as takoyaki Angie..

and now, i know that this dish can cooked as salad...Very yummy ^^
Anonymous 21/8/22 02:56: It's Judee- I find it very intriguing seeing the tiny little ocotopi in the salad. I've never seen anything like it and of course being a vegan, I really haven't had much familiarity with consuming octopus.They are so tiny and I think of octopus being huge.
Królowa Karo 21/8/22 09:06: Unfortunately, we don't like octopuses ...
Frank 21/8/22 14:08: Hmmm unusual but I like it! I love octopus and I do like mango salsa, so I'm sure I'd enjoy the combination.
Rainbow Evening 21/8/22 14:29: love baby octopus, but difficult to find in the market here....
tasteful food.
Muriel 21/8/22 15:49: cette salade de poulpe est particulièrement appétissante et plairait beaucoup à la maison !
Whats Cookin Italian Style Cuisine 21/8/22 19:02: I love both calamari salads and a big fan of mango this would be a great new addition to my recipe collection
foodtravelandwine 22/8/22 00:42: I love octopus....and this salad is mouth watering!!!....Abrazotes, Marcela
mjskit 22/8/22 03:39: Octopus is something I never see here in New Mexico. I bet it's delicious with the mango salsa.
Grace 22/8/22 06:50: Original y exquisita combinación.
Eres fantástica creando nuevas ideas culinarias.
Ésta; muy rica e ideal para lucir y disfrutar en una mesa.
Gracias Angie!
Buena semana!!🤗
Veronica Lee 22/8/22 07:39: I would love to try this!
Happy Monday, Angie 🐙🐙🐙
Sherry's Pickings 22/8/22 11:51: i'm surprised at all the comments about people not liking octopus! i love baby octopus. it used to be hugely popular here as a salad dish. I miss it now that you can't get it in restaurants and cafes anymore!
Angie's Recipes 22/8/22 12:50: @Sherry's Pickings I grew up eating lots of seafood, including regular octopus and baby varieties...they are so GOOD!
speedy70 22/8/22 14:19: Deliziosa questa insalata di polipo!!!
Pam 22/8/22 19:57: Mango goes so well with fresh seafood. Delicious!
DeniseinVA 22/8/22 21:26: Last time I tried octopus, a Spanish friend put it in her paella. It was very good and this recipe looks delicious. Thank you Angie :)
Cooking Julia 22/8/22 22:15: Nice colors, although I'm not very keen on actopus!
Ben | Havocinthekitchen 23/8/22 13:33: That's is such a terrific salad with some great flavours and textures. Fantastic colours, too!
bread&salt 23/8/22 15:13: I dont try Octopus before. But salad looks great. I would love to try it with chicken.
Raymund 23/8/22 23:56: Love this salad, octopus ang mangoes together, such a brilliant idea
tigerfish 29/8/22 23:46: Been looking out for frozen baby octopus to make some dishes similar to this delicious salad or perhaps sheet-pan roast/grill but only been able to get frozen baby cuttlefish.