Aegean Island Chtapodi me Kritharaki (Χταπόδι με Κριθαράκι)

Aegean island Chtapodi me Kritharaki is octopus stewed red with wine, tomato, bay, and a little cinnamon, then finished with kritharaki, the rice-shaped pasta that drinks the pot. It is not a grand fish-market dish. It is the clever island pot that turns one octopus into dinner for the table, glossy, dark, and sweet from the sea.

The step that decides it is the kritharaki. Toast it briefly in olive oil before the liquid goes in, then pull the pot from the heat while the pasta still has a little bite. Kritharaki keeps drinking as it rests; if you cook it until soft in the pot, it will sit down heavy and sticky. Toast first, rest after. That is the difference between grains you can see and a red paste.

Use the octopus liquor. A Greek island cook would not throw that away and then open a box of stock, my soul would leave my body. Simmer the octopus gently in its own juices, cut it when tender, and let the reserved liquor season the tomato. Good olive oil, and patience. The region is the dish's surname, and here the surname is the Aegean table.