Menorcan Octopus Rice

 Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 large octopus

• 1 jar of homemade sofrit (tomato sauce base)

• 500 g (½ kg) rice

• Twice as much water as rice

• Extra virgin olive oil

• Saffron and salt

Preparation

1. Prepare the octopus:
   Freeze the octopus for two days to tenderize it, then defrost slowly in the fridge.
   Once thawed, cut it into pieces, pat dry, and sauté in an earthenware pot with olive oil until browned and reduced.

2. Add the sofrit:
   Add the homemade sofrit and let it cook gently for 5 minutes to deepen the flavor.

3. Cook the rice:
   Pour in the hot water, saffron, and salt. Once it starts to boil, taste and adjust seasoning.
   Add the rice, and stir constantly with a wooden spoon so it doesn’t stick.

4. Finish and serve:
   When the rice has absorbed all the liquid, turn off the heat, let it rest for a few minutes, and serve immediately.

Cultural notes

This is one of Menorca’s most traditional fishermen’s rice dishes, from when octopus was abundant and cooked in many ways — with onions, baked with potatoes, or in salads.

Nowadays, with the trend of Galician-style octopus, it has become increasingly difficult to find Menorcan octopus in the market. As a result, these traditional dishes have slowly faded into oblivion, saved from recipe books, family notebooks, and collective memory.

Season

Traditionally a summer dish, prepared when octopuses were caught using traps, spears (fitora) or even by hand on the rocks — techniques now nearly extinct.