serves 4 or 8
Here is another beautiful eggplant dish from the rich repertoire of Lesvos, shared with me by Maria Koutsoumbis from the town of Molyvos. She and her sister, Dora Parisi, are something of a local legend. Dora wrote the book on the island’s cuisine, documenting dozens of recipes that speak tomes about Lesvos’s complicated history and the historical events that have shaped the island’s culture and cuisine. This recipe, according to Maria, is best made with a Greek island classic, sun-dried octopus, which is all but impossible to find stateside. Cooked octopus works almost as well. The dish is exotic but light, and very delicious! Note that if you’re using frozen octopus for this recipe, you’ll need to let it defrost in the refrigerator overnight, so plan accordingly.
2 pounds (900 g) fresh or frozen octopus
½ cup (120 ml) extra-virgin Greek olive oil, plus more as needed
6 red onions, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup (120 ml) dry white wine
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
4 Italian or Sicilian eggplants, about 6 inches (15 cm) long, trimmed
2 ripe tomatoes, cored and squeezed into chunks by hand, or 4 to 6 tablespoons (40 to 65 g) good-quality chopped canned tomatoes
⅔ cup medium-grain white rice
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
If using frozen octopus, defrost it overnight in the refrigerator.
When ready to cook the octopus, preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Using a sharp paring knife, trim the octopus, cutting away its head sac and removing its beak and the cartilage on the underside of the beak. Discard the sac, beak, and cartilage. Cut the octopus into 8 pieces along the tentacles.
In a large deep skillet or wide pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Stir in the garlic. Add the tentacles, reduce the heat to low, cover the pan with the lid slightly ajar, and cook until the tentacles exude their pink musky juices, about 15 minutes. Raise the heat a little and add the wine and vinegar. Reduce the heat to maintain a slow simmer, cover again with the lid ajar, and cook until the tentacles are tender but al dente, 35 to 45 minutes.
While the octopus is simmering, halve the eggplants lengthwise. Using a sharp paring knife, score the flesh of each eggplant half in a crosshatch pattern, being careful not to draw the knife completely through the flesh into the skin or to puncture the skin in anyway. Brush with olive oil and place cut-side down on the prepared baking sheet. Brush the skin with a little olive oil. Bake for 25 to 20 minutes, until the flesh is easy to pierce with a fork but the eggplant is still al dente. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly. Reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF (175ºC). Lightly oil a glass or ceramic baking dish just big enough to hold the eggplant halves snugly.
Strew the tomatoes over the bottom of the prepared pan and set aside.
Remove the octopus tentacles from the skillet and transfer them to a cutting board. Measure out the pot liquid; there should be about 2 cups (480 ml). Discard any excess. Return the reserved 2 cups (480 ml) liquid to the pan and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Add the rice, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until about two-thirds of the way done, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat. Coarsely chop the tentacles and stir them into the rice, together with the parsley.
Using a tablespoon, carefully scoop out most of the flesh from the eggplant halves, leaving enough against the skin to keep it firm enough to hold up to the filling (I usually leave about ⅛ inch / 3 mm).
Chop the eggplant flesh and add it to the octopus-rice mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Place the eggplant halves in the prepared baking dish, over the tomatoes. Divide the octopus-rice mixture evenly among the eggplant shells. Pour ½ cup (120 ml) water into the baking dish. Cover with parchment paper, then aluminum foil, and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the rice and octopus are tender. Remove from the oven, let cool slightly, and serve.