Go Back
Polpo alla Luciana in a terracotta dish with Gaeta olives, capers, and tomato sauce, garnished with flat-leaf parsley.

Polpo alla Luciana (Neapolitan Braised Octopus)

Octopus braised low and slow in a lidded pot with tomatoes, black olives, capers, and chili - a classic from the Borgo Marinari quarter of Naples.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 50 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 310
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1.1 kg whole octopus, cleaned (fresh or thawed from frozen) mantle and tentacles, beak removed
  • 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves, lightly crushed and peeled
  • 1 small dried peperoncino or chili flakes or 1/4 tsp flakes
  • 400 g canned whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand one standard tin
  • 80 g Gaeta black olives, pitted Kalamata as substitute
  • 2 tbsp salted capers, rinsed well approximately 20 g
  • 80 ml dry white wine optional but recommended
  • a small handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped added at the end only
  • to taste fine sea salt and black pepper season only after tasting - olives and capers are already salty

Method
 

  1. Rinse the octopus under cold water and pat it dry. Leave it whole for now - you'll cut it after cooking.
  2. Warm the olive oil in a heavy Dutch oven or terracotta pot over medium heat. Add the crushed garlic and peperoncino and cook for about 2 minutes, until the garlic turns pale gold and fragrant. Don't let it brown.
  3. If using white wine, add it to the pot and let it bubble for 1 minute to cook off the alcohol.
  4. Add the crushed tomatoes, pitted olives, and rinsed capers. Stir once to combine.
  5. Add the whole octopus to the pot. Turn it once to coat in the sauce. Clamp the lid on tight.
  6. Reduce the heat to low. Braise for 60 to 90 minutes without lifting the lid. The octopus will release its own liquid and cook in the resulting steam. Do not add water.
  7. After 60 minutes, test doneness by pressing a thin skewer into the thickest part of the mantle. It should slide in with no resistance. If it's still firm, continue braising for up to 30 more minutes.
  8. Remove the octopus from the pot and let it rest on a board for 5 minutes. Cut the tentacles into 3 to 4 cm pieces and cut the mantle into thick strips.
  9. If the sauce looks thin, return the pot to medium heat uncovered and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes until it thickens slightly.
  10. Return the cut octopus to the pot, stir through, and taste for salt and pepper. Add the fresh parsley off the heat and serve immediately.

Notes

Frozen octopus is often the better practical choice - the freeze-thaw cycle pre-tenderizes the meat and the result is more consistent than fresh at most fishmongers.