When I eat out, part of the fun comes from ordering foods I don’t normally cook at home.Charred octopusis one such item. While it has always been a menu staple at Greek, Spanish, and Portuguese restaurants, the cephalopod seems to be having a moment, appearing on widely varied menus around the country.

At Oak + Rowan in Boston, chef Justin Shoults features octopus differently depending on the time of the year. In winter, that may mean pairing it with bone marrow and hazelnuts, while in summer, he makes it the star of his take onsalade Niçoise, also featuring confit potatoes and an incredibleblack olive caramel. “Octopus is great because it is from the sea but has a meaty texture,” says Shoults. “This makes it versatile for all kinds of accompaniments in all seasons.”

No matter how he’s serving it, Shoultsprepares his octopus the same way: a long, slow braise to make it tender, followed by a short sear on a very hot grill. This two-step method guarantees the octopus is tender with a hint of smokiness and some lovely crisp bits. Although the result is restaurant-worthy, his basic recipe is so easy to master that anyone can cook octopus at home—even me.

Good to Know

Octopus comes in a range of sizes.在他的餐厅里，厨师Shoults倾向于准备只煮熟几英寸长的婴儿。（煮熟时章鱼会大大收缩。）稍大，较厚的触角（在烹饪前的厚末端遍布1英寸），可以更容易烧烤，并且可以更好地介绍烹饪。

Look for octopus in the frozen food aisle.Almost all octopus is frozen before shipping. Fortunately, the quality of octopus does not suffer much from freezing; plus, freezing begins the tenderizing process. If octopus has been blanched—it sometimes says so on the packaging—that’s fine and won’t affect the recipe here.

Look for cleaned octopus.清洁章鱼不适合尖叫，因为它涉及从头部麻袋中取出内脏，但大多数章鱼已经清洗过。如果您发生在新鲜的，未清洁的章鱼上，请钓鱼者为您清洁。如果章鱼仍然固定了头和喙，请切断头部（如果章鱼很大），然后将其弹出另一侧，将喙移开，将喙移开。

To tenderize octopus, cook it until…tender.Cooking time will vary depending on size. You can test with a knife—the thickest part will yield to the blade—but Shoults recommends taking a bite to be sure it’s tender.

How to Serve Charred Octopus

Serve it as a starter with a simple yogurt sauce.Shoults混合3汤匙。黑色大蒜泥和3/4杯希腊酸奶，1茶匙。每个雪利酒醋和新鲜的欧芹，以及少许盐和胡椒粉，呈现出巨大的黑暗且风味深的伴奏。或者，代替黑大蒜，在干雪利酒中浸泡了切碎的枣，然后用酸奶来模仿黑色大蒜的深层味道。在上面的照片中，我们变得更加容易，将酸奶与切碎的嫩草药混合在一起，并在盘子上包括一些烧焦的柠檬片和穿着的微型胶条。

在沙拉中展示。穿着简单的绿色沙拉，穿着醋辣酱，这也将成为一个杰出的Caesar. Or try Shoults’s version ofNiçoise salad以烧焦的章鱼为特色。

Toss it with pasta.Add some charred tentacles to your favoritetomato sauce—a spicy one would work especially well—and serve over pasta for a Sicilian-style treat. Or slice it thinly and top a pizza with it.

Pair it with potatoes.Serve it alongside烤或者grilled potatoes和烤胡椒garlicky aïoli. Add it to a stew orpaella. Since it’s already cooked, include it at the last minute to boost excitement and flavor.