Polbo á feira
Polbo á feira ( Galician , literally "beautiful octopus "), also pulpo estilo feira or pulpo a la gallega ( Spanish ) is a traditional dish of Galician cuisine and a name for a certain type of gastronomy.
Traditionally, dried octopus was used as a stockfish . Today frozen octopus is mostly used, which has a similar consistency and, unlike fresh octopus, does not need to be beaten extra soft. First, the head of the octopus is immersed in a copper kettle with boiling water and then pulled out again so that the arms are curled in the boiling water. Then it is cooked for about 20 minutes, whereby the right cooking time, similar to the Italian al dente, is crucial for the consistency. Then let the preparation soak in hot water for the same time. The finished octopus is cut hot with scissors, occasionally the heads are discarded and decorated with coarse salt, paprika and olive oil. It is served with unpeeled potatoes ( cachelos ) , mostly boiled in octopus stock, and bread on traditional wooden platters . Young red wine is drunk with it.
Ourense and Lugo, for example, are known for this type of preparation. It is also traditionally served at festivals in honor of the city saint of Lugo and former Bishop of León , St. Froilán. The associated cooks are called polbeiras , the corresponding mostly simple restaurants are called polbeiras .
The cooking
Polbeira while cutting
The finished dish
A Polbeira (2010)
