Turnip Greens Galician Soup

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Today I bring you one of the quintessential Galician “comfort food” recipes: Turnip greens Galician soup. This variant is my favourite of all times, hands down. That slightly bitter touch of the turnip greens is simply spectacular.

Ingredients

• 400 g. of turnip greens.

• 100 g. of white beans.

• 50 g. of Iberian pork fat.

• 250 g. of desalted pork shoulder.

• 1 chorizo.

• 3 potatoes.

• Salt.

Steps to follow

• Set a pan with about 3 litters of water (approx.)

• When the water starts to boil, add the beans, meat and the pork fat. Cook for 1 hour or until meat and beans are cooked. It is important to skim the beans from time to time.

• Once the meat is cooked, remove it, along with the pork fat, and add the turnip greens and sliced ​​potatoes. Cook for 20 minutes or until potatoes are cooked.

• Salt to taste and let stand before consuming.

Notes 1 – If you use dried beans it is important to soak them overnight. 2 – I do not incorporate the meat I use to give substance to the soup into the final result of the dish. I usually serve it with cabbage, chickpeas and potatoes (Galician stew for 2 people) or set aside to make croquettes.

Grilled Octopus with Sautéed Turnip Greens

Let’s start this week with one of my favourite recipes: Grilled octopus with sautéed turnip greens. To me, turnip greens are the Holy Grail of cooking. They are the key ingredient I would not change for anything in the whole wide world. If I have to choose between a few turnip greens and the most succulent piece of seafood, I will always be crystal clear about my choice. On the other hand, octopus is part of my tradition, born and raised in Mugardos, this eight-legged ingredient cannot be left out of my kitchen.

Ingredients

• 1 octopus.

• 1 bay leaf

• 500 g. of turnip greens

• Salt.

• Smoked hot paprika.

• EVO.

• 1 sliced garlic.

Steps to follow

• If you are going to work with a fresh octopus you need to mash it first to break the fibres, otherwise it will be chewy. If, on the other hand, you don’t want to go through that process, I recommend freezing the octopus for a few days. This way, the fibres will break on their own in the freezer.

• Cook the octopus in salted water for about 15 minutes (per Kg.) and then let it rest for another 20 with the fire off. Tradition says that you have to “scare” the octopus by dipping it 3 times in water before cooking. I don’t know if this really helps, but I always do it (just in case!)

• Once the octopus is cooked, it is necessary to let it cool in a colander before grilling.

• Clean the turnip greens well and cut them into pieces.

• Cook them in boiling water for about 10 minutes.

• Put the turnips in a drain so they lose the excess water.

• Cut the octopus tentacles in half (if they are very thick you can make 3 slices).

• Turn on the griddle over medium / high heat. Pour a drizzle of EVO and place the octopus’ slices for 5 to 10 minutes on each side (it all depends on the power of your griddle).

• Meanwhile, put a frying pan on the cooker with two tablespoons of EVO.

• Add the sliced ​​garlic to give the EVO flavour.

• Once the garlic gets golden brown, add the turnip greens (and a pinch of salt). Sauté for a few minutes and they will be ready to serve.

• When the octopus is ready, sprinkle it lightly with paprika, a pinch of salt and a thread of EVO.

• Serve and reach Nirvana!