In Octopus Terrine #1, we added gelatin to capture the juices from the cooked octopus, but we didn't like the texture. This time, we used large legs, strained the juice and wrap the octopus tightly to let it set in its own gel.
We found large Spanish octopus at a restaurant supply store for under $7/pound, usually we see $10/pound and up. It was a good sized beast, costing $55, and we used 4 legs for this. We added the legs to a sous vide bag with about 1/4 red bell pepper, diced fine; a touch of pimenton; some lemon zest; a little salt and black pepper. Like before, we cooked this at 77C for 5 hours, which is what Chef Steps recommends for "silky but tender".
When done, we strained off the liquid (it makes for an excellent risotto), and were left with legs that were much smaller than they went in; we lost at least 50% by weight. Alternating thick and thin ends of legs, we wrapped them tightly as a cylinder in cling film, then rolled to twist the film as tight as possible. It rested overnight in the fridge to let the internal gel bind the whole thing together.
When we took it out, it was a bit more lumpy -- less cylindrical -- than ideal. As we cut it with a very sharp thin knife, the terrine started coming apart. The texture was excellent, tender but not mushy, a little bounce, and the taste was very enjoyable.
Next time, I'd season and cook the same, but try to find a better way to compress the terrine. Do I really need a spring loaded terrine press like these?
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