Octopus Poke With Kimchi Recipe

J. Kenji López-Alt
Octopus Poke With Kimchi Recipe
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  • Yield:Serves 4 to 6 as an appetizer, or 2 to 3 as a main course with steamed rice
  • Active time:10 minutes
  • Total time:10 minutes
  • Rated: 5.0

[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]

Octopus is tough in more ways than one. Sure, it's literally tough and requires some technique to make it palatable, but it's also tough in that it has no problem standing up to strongly flavored ingredients. Like kimchi. Octopus is great with kimchi.

Why It Works

Tough octopus can stand up to kimchi.
  • Sweet onions provide flavor without pungency or heat.
  • Thinly slicing boiled octopus tames its rubbery texture.
  • Tossing the salad and letting it rest for just a few minutes before serving maximizes flavor development while retaining texture.
This recipe appears in:
How to Throw a Poke Party How to Make Octopus (Tako) Poke With Kimchi

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces (340g) boiled octopus, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (see note above)
  • 3 ounces (85g) sweet onion, such as Maui or Vidalia, cut into 1/4-inch dice
  • 1 scallion, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced
  • 4 ounces (115g) kimchi, roughly chopped, plus 1 tablespoon (15ml) juice from the jar
  • 4 teaspoons (20ml) soy sauce, more or less to taste
  • 2 teaspoons (10ml) toasted sesame oil, more or less to taste
  • 1 teaspoon (5ml) honey, more or less to taste
  • Kochukaru (Korean chili flakes), to taste (see note above)
  • Kosher salt
  • Steamed rice (if eating as a meal)

Directions

  1. 1.

    Combine octopus, onion, scallion, kimchi and its juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, and honey in a bowl and toss to combine. Season to taste with chili flakes and salt. Let stand 5 minutes at room temperature, then serve on its own or on top of steamed rice.

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