In short: Cooked octopus + potato bake + paprika oil + 20 min in the oven = Galician bar-style dish at home. Tips: cut potatoes thinly (3-4mm), don't overcook octopus (add last 5 min), olive oil with smoked paprika when serving.
Table of Contents
Ingredients (4 servings)
- 2 cooked Galician octopus legs (400-500g total)
- 4 medium-large potatoes
- 1 medium onion (optional)
- 100ml EVOO
- 1 tablespoon sweet paprika from La Vera (smoked is better)
- 1 teaspoon Maldon salt
- Chopped fresh parsley
- 1 garlic clove (optional, for aroma)
Step-by-step (20 min prep + 25 min oven)
- Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F) top+bottom heat.
- Peel and slice potatoes thinly (3-4mm). Julienne the onion if using.
- Mix potatoes with 50ml EVOO, salt, pepper. Arrange in a deep tray.
- Bake for 20 min at 200°C (400°F). Potatoes should be golden but not burnt.
- Remove tray, arrange sliced octopus over the potatoes.
- Drizzle remaining EVOO + sliced garlic on top.
- Return to oven for 5 minutes. Only to heat the octopus, DO NOT overcook.
- Remove, sprinkle with smoked paprika + Maldon salt + fresh parsley.
- Serve immediately.
The bar trick: the paprika oil
What distinguishes a Galician bar from the homemade version: how they apply the paprika. They do NOT sprinkle it directly (it can burn). They make "paprika oil":
Recipe: In a small pan, heat 100ml EVOO over VERY low heat (not smoking). Turn off heat, add 1 tablespoon sweet paprika + 1 teaspoon smoked paprika. Mix for 30 seconds.
Apply: with a spoon over the octopus when serving, allowing the red grains of the paprika to be seen. Vibrant color + deep flavor.
Variations of the dish
With grelos (Lugo style): add 200g cooked turnip greens over the potatoes. A more complete dish.
With Galician cheese (San Simón style): grate smoked cheese over the octopus just before serving.
With chorizo: 100g thinly sliced sweet chorizo mixed with the potatoes from the beginning. Adds smoked paprika to the dish.
Without paprika (gluten-free version for children): substitute paprika with fresh oregano. A more Mediterranean result.
Frequently asked questions
Which potato to use?
Can I make it with Mercadona's bagged octopus?
How much octopus per person?
Does pressure cooker + octopus + oven work?
Sweet or smoked paprika?
Wine pairing?
To conclude
This recipe is the difference between a good dinner at home and a memorable one. 25 minutes of work, simple ingredients, Galician bar-quality results. The quality of the octopus is the only non-negotiable: traditional cooked Galician octopus in whole legs gives superior texture to generic frozen octopus.
