Although he received little acclaim during his lifetime, Luis Meléndez is now recognized as one of the greatest 18th-century Spanish still life artists. His works are powerful and striking though his balanced composition and control of light. Highlights are found throughout the painting upon every surface imaginable. The precise brushstrokes convey texture (the smooth skin of the tomato and the rough stem of the aubergines) which in turn help to visualize the volume of the produce. Meléndez often placed the perspective at a very low vantage point to bring the subject matter closer to the viewer. With the ideas of the Enlightenment prevalent, Meléndez paid close attention to the natural forms found in everyday life (1).
Within Catalan cuisine there are five fundamental sauces including allioli, samfaina, picada, romesco, and sofregit. Hundreds of Catalan recipes begin by using sofregit as a base and it is use predominantly in recipes for sauces and stews. It a very old sauce dating back to medieval times with a mention in Libre de Sent Sovi from circa 1324. At that time in it’s history, sofregit was mainly composed of onions and leeks and it was not until the sixteenth century when tomatoes were brought over from the Americas that a version of the modern sofregit was born. The word sofregit is derived from the Catalan verb meaning to “underfry”, sofregir (2). The sauce is a lightly fried mixture of vegetables that over the low heat begin to caramelize.
Baby Octopus in Sofregit Sauce
Adapted from a recipe by José Andrés
1 jar artichokes
12 mushrooms
2 bay leaves
1/3 cup white wine
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
500g baby octopus
sofregit sauce (recipe below)
2 c medium grain rice
1 1/2 cups fish stock
1/4 tsp turmeric
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp dried chili flakes
Cut the baby octopus into segments and put in a small bowl with the lemon and chili flakes. Let the citrus acid tenderize the octopus before searing it on a very hot pan. Do not cook more than 1-2 minutes tops or it will assume a rubbery texture.
Saute the mushrooms and artichokes in the same pan the octpus was cooked in with two bay leaves. Once golden add the white wine to de-glaze the bottom of the pan. Add the liquids and the sofregit sauce and bring to a boil.
Add the rice and boil for 5 minutes over heavy heat. Add the turmeric and stir to incorporate well. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 20-30 minutes until the rice is lovely and tender. You may need to add more liquid. Mix in the octopus and any allow the rice to stand. Squeeze over fresh lemon and serve.
Sofregit Sauce
2 TB olive oil
1 can diced tomatoes
1 brown onion, chopped
1/2 red capsicum
2 cloves purple garlic, chopped
5 mushrooms, chopped
2 small chilies, de-seeded and chopped
1 Bay leaf
salt
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp dried oregano
Saute the onion, capsicum, garlic, and chilies in a pan until they are softened slightly. Add the remaining ingredients and cook over low heat until the vegetables are tender and the tomatoes begin to caramelize.
35 comments
shaz says:
Aug 13, 2009
oooh yum, well done on the challenge..that little octopus quot;armquot; is freaking me out a bit though;P. (I love grilled octopi)
Lisa Michelle says:
Aug 14, 2009
Megan, what a great idea to use Octopus. It looks absolutely delicious. I didn#39;t participate in this month#39;s DC challenge, but I did make ribs! At the end of my rib entry, I have a little gift for you. You can #39;grab#39; it here..br /br /http://lisamichele.wordpress.com/2009/08/13/pomegranate-sticks-to-the-ribs/br /br /Just scroll to the bottom of that entry :)
Karen says:
Aug 14, 2009
I thought 3Tbl of sofregit was too little as well! But the leftovers were great to fry a pot of mussels in. Great choice in the octopus!
Heavenly Housewife says:
Aug 14, 2009
What a stunning presentation that baby octopus makes! Looks fab!
Heavenly Housewife says:
Aug 14, 2009
What a stunning presentation that baby octopus makes! Looks fab!
Junglefrog says:
Aug 14, 2009
I also added more sofregit to the final dish which worked really well. What a great idea to use a baby octopus instead of the cuttlefish. I love the photo with the leg sticking up… Scary looking..:)
Anh says:
Aug 14, 2009
This looks fabulous!! I intended to buy baby octopus as well but the calamari was fresher that day. Great job!
Anula says:
Aug 14, 2009
Love the look of your dish – very mouth watering… Cheers :)
Trissa says:
Aug 14, 2009
What a great idea to use octopus and what a beautiful blog! I love the pictures.
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says:
Aug 14, 2009
This looks delicious! That little octopus arm looks like a curled bicep-or is that my bizarre mind seeing things again? :P
Megan@Feasting on Art says:
Aug 14, 2009
@Lisa: Many thanks, you are too sweet!!br /br /I know the tentacles are a bit freaky. My partner stares at me aghast when I happily munch on them. I am glad I am not the only one that thought 3TB was not enough.
Mary Teresa says:
Aug 14, 2009
Yum! The octopus looks delicious! My husband and I added extra Sofregit to the finished product since it was so yummy that 3TB was nowhere near enough! Beautiful.
Lauren says:
Aug 14, 2009
Beautiful job with the challenge!! Good idea to use all of the sofregit, maybe next time =D. I love the history, and your photos are gorgeous!!
climbhighak says:
Aug 14, 2009
In the video with Jose making the dish he put in more like three SERVING spoons of sofregit. br /br /Love the painting and the food. My fish monger had big a great big fat octopus but no babies. I went with the squid.
Nidhi says:
Aug 14, 2009
Love your blog and your easy descriptions. Keep up the good work!
Jen says:
Aug 14, 2009
Hee hee, I added ALL the sofregit that I had made (though I did halve Jose#39;s recipe for sofregit). I like the idea of adding chiles. My husband loves spicy food and I#39;m sure he would have enjoyed that addition.
Siri says:
Aug 14, 2009
Could not have taken prettier octopus photos myself.
Juliana says:
Aug 14, 2009
Interesting looking dish…although I do not think I can serve it since my husband cannot stand octopus…and I kind of agree now that I see the little tentacles :-) Nice pictures! By the way, congratulations on your award!
Amy I. says:
Aug 14, 2009
That octopus looks like it#39;s jumping right off the screen! I#39;m not a seafood girl, but I do appreciate a good photo! Love the pleated tomatoes in that painting too.
Charli says:
Aug 15, 2009
Love those octopus pics!br /br /The sofregit was amazing. It looks great this way with more of it :)
Audax says:
Aug 15, 2009
Wow just love your blog so full of art and information. Your final photo looks delicious. Wonderful effort and bravo. Cheers from audax in australia
Hannah says:
Aug 15, 2009
Yikes, hate to say it, but that tentacle is a rather creepy sticking out of the rice like that…! br /br /But sans octopus, it sounds really tasty. ;)
Ninette says:
Aug 15, 2009
I love your informative explanations, and the mixture of art and food is fantastic. Great photos!
isa says:
Aug 16, 2009
Wonderful job – the octopus looks delicious!
Y says:
Aug 16, 2009
This sounds incredibly delicious! I looove octopus and with that sauce, your dish looks like a winner.
zested says:
Aug 16, 2009
Great post – I learned so much about the art and the five fundamental Catalan sauces. Fascinating.
Valérie says:
Aug 16, 2009
Great job, and thanks for the historical info on sofregit!br /br /Yum, I love octopus…
Julie says:
Aug 16, 2009
Megan, once again your post is beautifully written and photographed. I am continually amazed by your creativity.br /br /I am not an octopus fan, but from the other comments I see many are!
Medusa Oblongata says:
Aug 17, 2009
Wow. Wow, Wow, WOW!!!! a freind directed me here and I am blown away!! What an incredible concept. My two favorite things, food and art! br /br /I#39;m a painter who has recently turned to cooking as another outlet. As a former bumbler who couldn#39;t boil water, no one believed me when I told them what I had been making. So began to photograph the evidence. However, your pics look straight out of a cookbook! br /br /And wouldn#39;t you know it, as a fan of tentacled foods, I had a few good runs with making squid, and wanted to try my hand at octopus. As if by magic, here you are with a recipe that looks DIVINE!!! Thanks a million, I#39;m going to try it on my day off for sure!
Rose says:
Aug 18, 2009
Absolutely beautiful photographs amp; presentation!
Ben says:
Aug 18, 2009
Very informative post with delicious food. Is there anything better in life? I am finding your blog amazing! I#39;ll be back often :)
rklive2eat says:
Aug 18, 2009
Megan, your grandma e-mailed me about your blog. I would like to write something in The Flint Journal about you and your blog.br /br /She said you attended C-A H.S. and UM, Ann Arbor. I need to know more.br /br /How did you get interested in food and art? How did you happen to wind up down under. What do you do for work there?br /br /What do you gain from doing the blog? How many hits a month?br /br /Hollar back,br /br /Ron Kruegerbr /Food Writerbr /The Flint Journal
Megan@Feasting on Art says:
Aug 19, 2009
Thank you everyone for your lovely comments.br /br /Ron, could you send me your email address? I have my response ready for you but I can#39;t seem to find a way to get in contact. tresjoliestudios AT gmail DOT com br /br /thanks!
Olga says:
Aug 20, 2009
Ooh how brave of you to use octopus!br /My favorite part about this dish was sofregit.
Picada and Sofregit - Johanna Bailey says:
Aug 15, 2012
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