Red Wine-Braised Octopus

Recipe courtesy of Timothy Smith, Executive Chef, Hideaway Beach Club (Marco Island, Fla.)

Ingredients for the Braised Octopus
Spanish octopus - 1 ea. (5-7 lbs)
good red wine - 1 bottle, save the cork (Chef's note: We use Duckhorn Goldeneye Pinot Noir 2018)
bulb of fennel - 1 ea., stalk removed, rough chop
shallots - 2 ea., peeled, rough chop
garlic cloves - 6 ea., smashed
Stanislaus 7/11 Ground Tomatoes - 3 c.,
kosher salt - 1 Tbsp.
black pepper - 2 tsp., fresh ground
Ingredients for the White Bean and Chorizo Ragout
dry chorizo - 1 c. (Chef's note: preferably serrano chorizo)
cannellini beans - 4 c., cooked
thyme leaves - 1 Tbsp., fresh
rosemary - 1 tsp., fresh, finely chopped
garlic - 2 cloves, fresh, finely chopped
chicken stock - 1/2 c.
olive oil - 1 Tbsp.
Ingredients for the Spring Pea Emulsion
peas - 2 c., fresh, shucked, blanched and shocked
lemon juice - .25 c., fresh
lemon zest - 1 ea.
kosher salt - 1 tsp.
garlic-infused olive oil - .5 c. (Chef's note: We make ours by low-temp roasting garlic cloves in Spanish olive oil.)

Procedure for the Braised Octopus

In a 6-qt. dutch oven, place all of the ingredients, including the wine cork. Cover and cook in a 275° F oven for 2-2.5 hours or until octopus is tender.
Remove from the oven, uncover and let cool for 20-30 minutes.
Remove octopus from braising liquid. Remove the head, and beak from the octopus, then carefully cut between each tentacle to separate them.
Place on a rack to cool in the refrigerator until ready for service.

Procedure for the White Bean and Chorizo Ragout

In a saute pan, sautee the chorizo in olive oil until the fat starts to render from the chorizo 1-2 minutes
Add garlic, thyme and rosemary. Sautee 30 seconds more, then add the chicken stock and cannellini beans. Reduce heat to a simmer.
Once the liquid is almost completely au sec, taste for seasoning and adjust to liking. Remove from heat for
service.

Procedure for the Spring Pea Emulsion

In the Vitamix blender, add all ingredients and puree until very smooth.
Pass through a fine-mesh strainer, and put into a fine-tip squeeze bottle for service.

To Serve

Rub octopus tentacle with Spanish olive oil, salt and pepper and grill on char-broiler. Remove from heat and slice each tentacle into 4 smaller pieces.
In the vessel of your choice, start by placing a portion of the white bean ragout down as the base of your dish.
Place 2 of the pieces of octopus over the ragout, and decoratively place dots of the pea puree as desired for plate presentation.
Garnish using fresh pea tendrils. You can also use a grilled lemon to garnish.