Baked octopus in foil

Simple but super delicious and easy to put together recipe for octopus. It can be served as a meze accompanying the "fava dip/spread" but also as a main meal along with baked potatoes

Recipe of Argyro Barbarigou,
a prominent Head Cook and food writer in Greece
Check out her great site Argiro for more delicious recipes

Ingredients (for 4 people):
1 whole octopus, frozen or fresh (about 1Kg-1.200gr)
4 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar
1 bay leaf
1 clove of garlic, cut in half
1 pinch of oregano
pepper
2 large aluminium foil sheets

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Clean the octopus and place it in a large bowl.

Add the oil, the balsamic, the bay leaf, the garlic, the oregano, a bit of pepper and stir very well. ***No salt is used because octopus is quite salty by nature.

On a flat surface lay crosswise the two foil sheets. Place the octopus in the centre and pour over with the dressing.

Pull the sides of the foil over the octopus and scrunch the edges together to leave you with a loose parcel –not tight because the octopus swells while cooking.

Put in the oven and bake for about 1h 15 min - 1h 30 min. Take out of the oven, uncover and serve while it is still hot, cutting it into pieces.