Smoked & Seared Octopus | Perth BBQ School

In this video we’re going to show you how to smoke octopus until it’s beautifully tender then sear it over raging hot charcoal to get that crunchy maillard reaction goodness.
Almost all the recipes I came across for charcoal grilled octopus involved boiling or simmering the octopus for a period of time to break down the collagen then searing it over charcoal.
My thoughts were why can we not replace that with a low temperature smoke to achieve tenderness plus dial up the flavour.
For this recipe I used a Pro Q bullet smoker for the indirect component, Weber Go Anywhere to sear on. This could have all been done in the bullet smoker but I started out at BBQ HQ then wanted to go home to see the family.
Ingredients:
1kg Octopus, the bigger the better. We used local WA octopus from Catalano’s Seafood. Buy as local as possible. Most octopus has typically already been frozen, this is useful as it will assist with tenderness and means you no longer need to beat it against a rock.
Marinade:
1 tbsp gochujang
2 tbsp miso paste
30ml sesame oil
2 cloves garlic
100ml red wine vinegar
100ml soy sauce
150ml mirin
Mix together, marinate octopus for 4 hours minimum, can be overnight. Vac seal ideal, if not then figure out some sort of alternative.
Method:
Set your barbecue for indirect heat, around 225f (110c), a water pan is extremely useful as we are replacing the simmering technique that is traditionally used for octopus so we want to promote a high moisture environment.
Use the smoking wood of your choice, I like pecan as it’s bold and the octopus can handle it. Any fruit wood would also work. I am a little more aggressive with the application of smoke in this dish as it’s only a short cook and the octopus can deal with it; this means a slightly whiter “dirtier” smoke than the thin blue we typically aim for. Don’t get carried away though.
Cook for approximately 2-3 hours until internal temp in the thickest sections is around 165f / 74c or probe tender. Collagen starts to break down around 160f and an octopus is mostly collagen!
The probe tenderness is so much more apparent than traditional low and slow cooks, it’s either tight and rubbery or soft and buttery there is not much of an in between. It should be quite noticeable.
Once probe tender take the octopus from the barbecue, wrap in foil and bench rest while you get your charcoal grill ready. You want a high direct heat for this last part.
The octopus is already cooked tender so the final stage is about getting some char, maillard reaction, delicious crunchy goodness on the outside. Work quick, it shouldn’t take long.
Hope you all enjoyed - let me know your thoughts! I’ve been barbecuing for some time now but video editing is a much more recent, confusing venture.