Try this amazing traditional Azorean Portuguese Octopus stew recipe (Polvo Guisado) made with red wine, potatoes and seasoned to perfection. Being married to a Portuguese, actually an Azorean, I was first introduced to Octopus stew during the Christmas holidays. My husband’s all time favorite traditional Portuguese dish. I have to admit I’m not an Octopus fan but the way this stew is prepared is absolutely delicious and hits the spot. One of my favorite things about this stew is the potatoes, they are so fricken yummy.
How to Make Azorean Portuguese Octopus Stew (Polvo Guisado)?
This Azorean Portuguese Octopus stew recipe is easy to prepare. Follow our step by step guide and you’ll be enjoying the best seafood octopus stew ever inspired by the Azores Islands in Portugal.
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 pounds potatoes diced into cubes
- 2 Octopus ( 2 pounds each)
- 3 garlic cloves crushed
- 5 tbsp. Olive Oil
- 1 small onion chopped finely
- 11/2 tablespoons pimenta moida ( Sweet or Hot Pimiento Paste)
- I can tomato paste ( 156 ml or 5.5 oz)
- 5 cups red wine
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons parsley chopped finely (optional)
- 2 tablespoons chopped coriander (optional)
- 2 bay leafs
- 1/4 teaspoon black peeper
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika
Instructions:
- Rinse the octopus thoroughly and cut into 1 inch pieces and set aside.
- In a large pot, add the olive oil, onions, garlic and saute on medium heat.
- Add in the octopus pieces the tomato paste, pimenta moida, paprika and stir.
- Add the black and white pepper, salt, and two cups of wine and stir and bring to a boil.
- Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium and cook the octopus on for about an hour stirring occasionally.
- After an hour add the remaining 3 cups of wine, bay leafs, coriander, parsley and diced potatoes and cook for about 35-40 minutes or until potatoes are soft.
- Serve with fresh cut bread.
Azorean Portuguese Octopus Stew Recipe (Polvo Guisado)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds potatoes diced into cubes
- 2 Octopus 2 pounds each
- 3 garlic cloves crushed
- 5 tbsp. Olive Oil
- 1 small onion chopped finely
- 11/2 tablespoons pimenta moida Sweet or Hot Pimiento Paste
- I can tomato paste 156 ml or 5.5 oz
- 5 cups red wine
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons parsley chopped finely optional
- 2 tablespoons chopped coriander optional
- 2 bay leafs
- 1/4 teaspoon black peeper
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika
Instructions
- Rinse the octopus thoroughly and cut into 1 inch pieces and set aside.
- In a large pot, add the olive oil, onions, garlic and saute on medium heat.
- Add in the octopus pieces the tomato paste, pimenta moida, paprika and stir.
- Add the black and white pepper, salt, and two cups of wine and stir and bring to a boil.
- Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium and cook the octopus on for about an hour stirring occasionally.
- After an hour add the remaining 3 cups of wine, bay leafs, coriander, parsley and diced potatoes and cook for about 35-40 minutes or until potatoes are soft.
- Serve with fresh cut bread.
Maria
I prepared this over the Christmas holidays and it brought back so many memories. My whole family loved it and it reminded us of how my grandmother used to make it. Thank you Gimmeyummy.
Carmela
My whole family loved this recipe.
Sonia
Amazing!
I tried making the octopus last night and omg soooo good!
Thank you so much
Cindy
Very nice recipe, the real thing. The only thing I did was add a bit more spice to it to give it a bit of a kick.
Uray
One of the best seafood dished I’ve ate
Nicola Wohlschlegel
Delicious seafood recipe.
Jorge
One of the best octopus recipes I’ve made.
christian
It doesn’t get better than this, wine, potatoes and octopus
Camila
Very yummy recipe.
Cesar
Just like home. Nice recipe with easy instructions.
Nana
One word to say about this recipe…Yummy!!!
Janet
My husband is Azorean and I surprised with this recipe. He loved it and compared it to his mom’s recipe.
Gina
I can’t believe I finally made this recipe. It tastes so warm and delicious. Love the potatoes and the octopus melt in your mouth. Ta
thank you for sharing this recipe.
jordan shoes
Yummy, I love this recipe.
Mary
I love how all these flavors come together.
Daniel Lachance
Question. I m about to try this recipe tomorrow. I will be working with 1 octopus only, not two. It weighs 1.6 lbs. should cut the other ingredients accordingly? Let me know! Thanks!
Marcela Arias
Hi Daniel,
Thanks for stopping by Gimme Yummy!!
I would recommend you scale back on the ingredients by 20%. For the wine use 4 cups instead 5.
Hope this helps.
Take care and stay safe!
Cheers!!
Dave
This my new favorite seafood dish. Thanks for sharing!
Nelson
I made this recipe for the 2nd time today, and it’s perfect. Growing up my mother made this dish almost weekly. Getting a recipe from a Portuguese mother is painful, so I’ve spend years trying to find a recipe that would come close to hers and THIS IS IT. It was one of my favorites growing up and my kids love it also. It’s great to be able to feed them like I was fed as a kid.
Thank for you for sharing this recipe. It’s greatly appreciated it.
Marcela Arias
Hey Nelson,
We’re happy you enjoyed the recipe! My Azorean mother in law deserves all the credit for sharing her recipe that has been in their families for generations.
Cheers,
Marcela
Robert
Nelson, I can completely relate. My mother and father would make this every time I visited. I have tried over and over again, to get the recipe, and it’s always made with love. A lil bit of this and a bit of that. And every time they made it, did it done differently. But I finally got the gist of it and made it for a group of friends. It was a success. Now this recipe is the closest recipe I have found to how my parents made it.
Daniel
Hey! I’m going to cook this tonight, I was just wondering if there is any specific kind of red wine that works best. Let me know! Thank you.
Marcela Arias
Hi, Daniel,
Just Red table wine.
Cheers,
Gimme Yummy Team
Michelle
Which red wine works best? I used Cabernet Sauvignon.
Marcela Arias
Hello,
Cabernet Sauvignon is a good choice, but you can use any type of regular red table wine.
Cheers,
Marcela
russell
Made this for the weekend and everyone loved it. Octopus was tender and not chewy and stew taste so delicious.
Dane
The best Azorean octopus stew I’ve ever made! Thanks for the recipe!!
Anthony
Amazing dish!
Animesh
Hi – looks very exciting. Tomato paste/purée or a can of chopped tomatoes? Looking forward to hearing back and thanks a lot for sharing!
Marcela Arias
Hi Animesh,
Thanks for stopping by! I would go with a can of chopped/diced tomatoes for best results.
Let’s us know how it turned out :)
Cheers,
Marcela
Lee
Absolutely delicious. My wife farted like cannon fire for three days and frightened the cat. We loved it.
Gina Arias
Hi Lee, Thank you soo much for the feedback! Lol…It’ Azorean Spicy that for sure but absolutely tasty.
Cheers,
Marcela
Gail
can you reheat this the next day?
Marcela Arias
Hi Gail, yes you can. It taste even better the next day.
Cheers