Gaeta-style octopus recipe | Gourmet Traveller

Ingredients

• ¼ small loaf stale sourdough, crusts removed, wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen (overnight)
• 25 gm (about ¼ cup) capers in salt, soaked overnight in cold water
• Olive oil, for shallow-frying, plus extra for drizzling
• Finely chopped semi-dried olives (see note), to serve
• Braised octopus
• 100 ml olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 small fennel bulb, sliced
• 1 kg octopus tentacles (see note)
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 3 dried bay leaves
• 250 ml dry white wine
• Tomato sauce
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 300 gm ripe tomatoes, diced
• 3 fresh bay leaves
• ¼ tsp chilli flakes
• 150 gm aeta olives pitted and halved (see note)
• ¼ cup (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped