Seafood Salad

Ingredients

• 600 g Octopus
• 300 g Squid
• 250 g Shrimp
• 500 g Mussels
• 500 g Clams
• 6 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 whole Lemon
• 2 clove Garlic
• 1 bunch Parsley
• 1 to taste Salt

Steps

1. Clean the mussels and clams: scrub the mussel shells with a metal sponge and pull off the beards, then rinse repeatedly under cold running water.
2. Soak the clams in salted water for an hour so they release any sand.
3. Open the shellfish: heat a splash of olive oil with a crushed garlic clove in a wide pan, add the mussels and clams, cover and cook over high heat for 3-4 minutes until they open.
4. Discard any that stay shut.
5. Shell most of them, keeping a few in the shell for garnish, and filter the cooking liquid through a fine sieve.
6. Cook the octopus: bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil, dip the octopus in three times by the head to curl the tentacles, then submerge fully and simmer 25 minutes from the return to the boil.
7. Turn off the heat and let it rest in its water 20 minutes.
8. Drain and cool before cutting into bite-size pieces.
9. Cook the squid: clean and slice the squid into rings, then simmer them in salted water for 10 minutes until tender.
10. Drain and let cool.
11. Cook the shrimp: bring a small pot of salted water to the boil, add the shrimp and cook just 3 minutes.
12. Drain, cool, peel and devein them.
13. Make the dressing: in a bowl whisk together the extra-virgin olive oil, lemon juice, finely chopped garlic, chopped parsley, salt and a little of the filtered shellfish liquid.
14. Combine: put the octopus, squid, shrimp, shelled mussels and clams in a large bowl, pour over the dressing and toss gently so every piece is coated.
15. Chill and serve: cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour to let the flavours marry.
16. Bring back close to room temperature, garnish with the reserved shells and serve with lemon wedges.

Tips

• Cook each type of seafood separately so nothing turns rubbery — octopus needs the long simmer-and-rest, while shrimp and squid need only minutes. Dressing the seafood while still slightly warm helps it absorb the flavours. Use it the same day; seafood salad does not keep well past 24 hours.