Handling Instructions for Baby Octopus

Our whole octopus is sourced from the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and Japan is offered in both raw and fully cooked (from Japan) and in sizes ranging from as small as an ounce to more than 13 pounds.  Regardless of the origin or size of our whole octopus the proper handling instructions are the same.  Our frozen octopus must be stored at or below 0°F (-18°C) and then thawed properly when ready to cook or to eat in the case of our precooked Japanese product.   The octopus should be stored in the freezer in the original package or in plastic wrap or a tight fitting plastic bag for product that has been removed from the original packaging.  This will help prevent freezer burn (dehydration).   Our IQF octopus has an 18 month frozen shelf life and our block frozen has a 24 month frozen shelf life.  Links to proper seafood handling instructions: NOAA - Fish Watch: Handling Seafood and A Consumer Guide to Safe Seafood Handling.

Thawing Baby Octopus

Whole octopus can be thawed under refrigeration between 33 and 39°F until it is completely thawed.  The thawing time is dependent upon if the octopus is IQF or block frozen.  IQF octopus will thaw between 24 and 48 hours depending upon the size of the octopus and block frozen will take up to 48 hours or longer.  However, IQF and block frozen octopus can be quickly thawed by placing the product in a colander and running under cold water until thawed.  In general, IQF octopus will thaw within several minutes while the block frozen may take 10 to 20 minutes or longer.  This is our preferred quick thawing method to use whenever possible.

Important Instructions for Baby Octopus

Thawed raw octopus should be used immediately or within 1-2 days due to the fact that octopus in general has a relatively short thawed shelf life.

Cooking Tips

Whole raw octopus can be challenging to cook to a tender pleasing texture.  This is especially true for the larger sizes that can run over 13 pounds.  The smaller sized octopuses running less than 1/4th of a pound are less complicated to prepare.  However, larger whole octopuses need to be boiled and tested periodically for tenderness during the cooking process.  Because of this, our conveniently precooked octopus from Japan is gaining in popularity.  Links to cooking tips and recipes: Fish & Seafood Cooking and Recipes
 

Thailand

With more than 1,550 miles of coastline, Thailand—officially, the Kingdom of Thailand—has become one of the world’s leading seafood suppliers.  Primary seafood products from Thailand include cultured (farmed) shrimp sold in various value-added forms as well as canned seafood—predominantly tuna.

With a focus on constant improvement of shrimp farming techniques to reduce impacts on the environment, as well as the development of new, value-added products, Thailand has emerged over the years as one of the leaders in this beloved seafood category.

In the tuna category, Thailand is a major global producer of canned tuna, much of it caught by vessels from other countries that bring it, frozen, to Thailand to be canned.

Vietnam

With a coastline of 2,140 miles, as well as numerous rivers and lakes, Vietnam has had a long tradition of fishing and a culinary tradition that includes finfish, shellfish, and molluscan shellfish.

Bordering China in the far North, and Laos and Cambodia in the middle and Southern regions, the country—known officially as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam—is divided into 58 provinces, and includes several major sea ports.

With seafood production surpassing USD $6 billion in 2012, seafood—both cultured and wild—represents an important export for this developing country.

Major seafood exports from Vietnam include cultured and wild shrimp:  Black Tiger prawns and Penaeus vannamei are grown in Southeast Vietnam, and small white and pink shrimp are still commercially caught in the South China Sea off the southern coast.

In addition, Vietnam is becoming known for its high-tech seafood processing industry, adding value to commercially harvested and farmed fish and seafood.

Species that are commercially caught include Grouper, Red Snapper, Red Mullet, Tuna, Swordfish, and Barramundi—which are the major species that are exported to Australia, the United States, and the EU. Vietnam is also a major producer of farmed Tilapia, and two species of Pangisius (boucourti and hypothalamus). Squid and octopus, as well as various species of lobster and crab and molluscan  shellfish are also major export products as well as products consumed in-country.

India

The most populous democracy in the world, India has 1.2 billion people living in an area that is the world’s seventh-largest land mass.  Bordering the countries of Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, and Bangladesh, India includes breathtakingly beautiful mountainous regions, plains, rivers (such as the legendary Ganges River), and valleys—and a coastline of 4,700 miles. 

Within Indian marine waters, commercial species such as mackerel, sardines, shark, perch, tuna, shrimp, and cuttlefish are some of the main species harvested.  Freshwater fish include carp and catfish and there are several species of brackish water fish.

India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) encompasses more than 2 million square kilometer, so there is a huge potential within India, provided that the fishery is managed to thwart overexploitation of the resource.

Top export items from India include frozen shrimp (the dominant seafood export), and frozen lobster tails, to name a few.

Aquaculture in India is growing in importance, however, and in addition to producing carp and giant river prawn for in-country consumption, India has begun to grow and export warm brackish water shrimp as well.