Octopus / Seafood soup

This was something I knocked up ultra fast for a wee snackette and to use up some more of the jar of marinated octopus chunks I have sitting in the fridge since I opened it for the seafood pasta dish I made a while back. I'm afraid because I made this up as I went along the ingredients list is a little random, just depends on what's in the cupboard at the time.

A word on the 'thickening granules' - I know it sounds like chemicals but they're actually made from potato starch - just quicker than adding potatoes and waiting for them to cook through and better if you don't want to puree the soup too. Doesn't have the danger of giving that 'flour' taste if you neglect to cook out flour properly if using that as a thickening agent. IMO dead handy to have a tub sitting in the cupboard.

Oct Soup

Olive oil

Clove Garlic

Chunks marinated octopus

0.5tsp smoked paprika

2 spn tomato puree
1 pint water

Pinch each dried oregano, basil and garlic/herb seasoning mix

Flavoured / plain salt

1 spn mushroom ketchup

Handful frozen cooked prawns

Spoon thickening granules.

Gently heat oil. Chop few chunks of octopus into bite size pieces & fry off.

Slice clove garlic finely and add to pan.

Sprinkle in paprika, add tomato paste then water. Stir well.

Add dried herbs, salt and mushroom ketchup.

Simmer gently for a few mins to cook flavours through and soften the octopus; although these marinated ones are already cooked.*

Chuck in the defrosted prawns and a sprinkling of thickening granules and simmer again to thicken up.

A quick tasty soup to knock up with whatever you have to hand. It was just a bit 'tomato-y' to start with - it really need the depth given by the mushroom ketchup.

*Unlike squid, octopus needs a relatively long cooking time to tenderise. Squid needs a short cooking time otherwise it'll go rubbery, octopus starts off more rubbery and in the absence of a handy Greek island upon whose rock bound shore you can beat your octopus 50 times (25 each side); bash it with a mallet [when using fresh octopus this is] and give it a longer cooking time.