Octopus and Chickpea Salad, Smoked Paprika

Rinse the octopus under cold running water. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil with the salt and whole garlic cloves.

Blanch the octopus in the boiling water for 30 seconds — this will make the tentacles curl. Remove and drain.

In a Dutch oven or deep pan, bring fresh water to a gentle simmer. Submerge the octopus and cook over low heat, uncovered, for 40 to 45 minutes until the flesh yields easily when pierced with a knife. Let cool in its own liquid.

When cool enough to handle, cut the octopus into bite-sized pieces, approximately 2 cm thick. Discard the beak and excess skin. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the smoked paprika with a pinch of salt. Pour in the olive oil and whisk vigorously to dissolve the paprika into the oil.

Add the red wine vinegar and the juice of one lemon. Continue whisking until the vinaigrette is emulsified and glossy. Taste and adjust salt.

Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Toss them with olive oil, a pinch of salt, and black pepper.

Warm the chickpeas gently in a dry pan over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes, just until they are heated through and slightly toasted at the edges. Remove from heat and set aside.

Warm the chickpeas gently in a dry pan over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes, just until they are heated through. For best results and to achieve slightly toasted edges, add 1 teaspoon of olive oil to the pan before warming.

Core and dice the tomatoes into 1 cm pieces. Place in a colander and let any excess juices drain away briefly — this prevents a watery salad.

Peel the cucumber, halve it lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Dice into 1 cm cubes.

Quarter the bell pepper, remove the seeds and ribs, and cut the flesh into thin strips. Roughly chop the parsley.

Arrange the warm chickpeas as the first layer on a wide serving platter or individual plates. Drizzle with half of the smoked paprika vinaigrette and fold gently to coat.

Place the poached octopus pieces over the chickpeas. Spoon the remaining vinaigrette over the octopus, allowing it to pool around the pieces.

Scatter the diced tomato, cucumber, and bell pepper strips across the top. Finish with a generous handful of fresh parsley.

Cut the remaining lemon into wedges and tuck them at the side of the platter. Finish with a final dusting of smoked paprika over the entire salad. Serve at room temperature.