Experience our glorious Octopus Tempura, crafted with tender, meaty octopus bonded using transglutaminase to create a satisfying bite. Naturally briny and rich in flavor, the octopus is coated in a light, crispy tempura batter and fried to golden perfection. This innovative twist turns traditional tempura into a standout dish with unparalleled texture and taste.
Difficulty
Intermediate
Ingredients
- Octopus Ingredients:
- 2.4kg (4.5 Pounds) Whole Frozen Octopus
- 16g Moo Gloo RM
- Ingredients Tempura:
- 33g (¼ Cup) Cornstarch
- 33g (¼ Cup) Crisp Coat
- 70g (½ Cup) AP Flour
- 3g (½ tsp) Kosher Salt
- 1 Egg
- 50g (¼ Cup) Cold Vodka
- 135g (½ Cup) Cold Soda Water
- 2 Quarts of Canola Oil
Equipment
- Plastic Food Film Â
- Large Bowl Â
- Small Fine Mesh StrainerÂ
- Twine
- Vacuum Sealer
- Sous Vide Circulator Â
- Medium Saucepan
- Chopsticks/Tongs
Timing
Active Time: 1 Hour
Total Time: 30 Hours
Yield
6-8 Servings
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Prepare Octopus
Cut the head off and cut out the beak from the center of the octopus. Cut the legs off and reserve 4 of them in the refrigerator.Take each leg with the suckers side down and using a sharp knife slice it length wise down the middle carefully without cutting through the octopus.Slice it lengthwise a few more times to expose more of the flesh’s surface space and pat dry.Chef Note: Make sure to pat the sliced legs dry very well. Too much water can make the Moo Gloo less effective.
-
Layer and Bond Tentacles Together
Lay 2 large pieces of plastic food film side by side with 3-4 inches of overlap. Lay one more large piece of plastic wrap evenly in between the two pieces of plastic wrap.Lay one leg down horizontally with the sucker side down and sprinkle the Moo Gloo onto the flesh. When arranging the sliced legs together to seal, line up the thicker end of the leg next to the thinner end of the adjoining leg to get an even cylinder end to end.Sprinkle Moo Gloo on another leg and place right up along the first leg making sure that the open flesh is in contact with the first leg.Do this for the remaining two legs. When they are all lined up, sprinkle the rest of the Moo Gloo over all of them.
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Roll Tentacles in Plastic Wrap
Using the bottom of the plastic food film, bring the legs on top of each other making sure the exposed flesh of all the legs are all in contact with each other and then roll into a tight cylinder using twine to tie off the ends.Repeat the layering and bonding step and roll tentacles in plastic wrap step with all tentacles.Vacuum seal and refrigerate your rolled tentacles and refrigerate overnight to set.
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Sous Vide and Cool in Ice
The next day, set your sous vide circulator to 85°C (185°F) and let it come up to temperature.When the sous vide has come up to temperature drop in the cylinders.The sous vide will drop in temperature. Wait til it has reached 85°C again before setting a timer for 4 hours.After 4 hours, set up an ice bath. Dunk the octopus cylinders in once the time has expired. Let cool completely.
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Cut and Create Tempura Batter
Remove the octopus from the ice bath, unwrap, discard liquid and pat dry with a paper towel.Cut into desired sizes for the tempura and set aside.In a large bowl thoroughly combine the dry tempura ingredients. Whisk the egg with the vodka and add the soda water.Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir quickly with the chopsticks while moving the bowl back and forth with your other hand until just combined.Chef Note: When making the tempura batter be sure to mix until just combined. Over mixing will develop gluten you do not want in the final result.
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Fry and Enjoy!
Add the canola oil to the medium saucepan and set to 350°F.Dip the octopus pieces into the tempura batter and slowly drop into hot oil.Cook for 3-4 minutes or until crisp flipping occasionally with the chopsticks.Drain on a wire rack, let cool for a minute and enjoy!
Summary
Recipe Name
Octopus Tempura
Author Name
Modernist Pantry
Published On
Preparation Time
Total Time