Chef Dimitra
Aegean Islands Chtapodi Xidato (Χταπόδι Ξιδάτο)
From the Aegean islands, this is the Lenten octopus: simmered slowly without added water, sliced while tender, and steeped in vinegar, oregano, and its own dark cooking liquor.
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Northern Aegean Soupies me Patates (Σουπιές με Πατάτες)
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Cuttlefish, potatoes, sweet peppers, and olive oil make the Northern Aegean fast-day pot, rich enough for supper and plain enough to stay honest.
Main Dishes
Greek
Weeknight
Comfort Food
Budget Friendly
25 min
Active Time
1 hr 15 min cook•1 hr 40 min total
Yield4 servings
Soupies me Patates belong to the Northern Aegean fasting table: cuttlefish stewed with potatoes, onion, sweet peppers, tomato, and good olive oil until the sea taste settles into the sauce. It is a weeknight dish if the fishmonger has cleaned the cuttlefish for you, and a comfort dish because the potatoes drink everything.
The method that decides it is the first simmer. Cuttlefish goes tough, then tender. If you rush it with the potatoes from the beginning, the potatoes collapse before the bodies soften. Let the cuttlefish cook low in its own juices and tomato first, then add the potatoes for the last stretch. Good olive oil, and patience.
This is not fish for the fasting calendar, and that matters. On strict fast days, fish was often forbidden, but shellfish and cephalopods were allowed, so dishes like this kept coastal kitchens fed without breaking the rule. My notebook has versions from Kavala, Thassos, and Lesvos, and they all agree on the important thing: don't make the pot watery.
Cuttlefish stews with potatoes are part of the Lenten and island cooking of the northern and eastern Aegean, where cephalopods filled the protein gap on fast days when fish was not eaten. The tomato-and-pepper version reflects the later spread of tomato cookery through Greek kitchens in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, while the fasting logic is older. In coastal Macedonia and the islands opposite, the dish remained a household pot, not a taverna showpiece.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
cleaned cuttlefish (soupies)
Quantity
900g
bodies sliced into wide strips and tentacles separated
waxy potatoes
Quantity
700g
peeled and cut into 4cm chunks
extra virgin Koroneiki olive oil
Quantity
80ml
yellow onion
Quantity
1 large
finely chopped
garlic cloves
Quantity
2
thinly sliced
red sweet pepper
Quantity
1
cut into strips
green sweet pepper
Quantity
1
cut into strips
ripe tomatoes
Quantity
250g
grated, or use 200g canned crushed tomatoes
dry white wine
Quantity
120ml
bay leaf
Quantity
1
sweet paprika
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
1/4 teaspoon
fine sea salt
Quantity
8g
plus more to finish
hot water
Quantity
250ml
as needed
flat-leaf parsley
Quantity
20g
chopped
lemon juice (optional)
Quantity
1 tablespoon
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| cleaned cuttlefish (soupies)bodies sliced into wide strips and tentacles separated | 900g |
| waxy potatoespeeled and cut into 4cm chunks | 700g |
| extra virgin Koroneiki olive oil | 80ml |
| yellow onionfinely chopped | 1 large |
| garlic clovesthinly sliced | 2 |
| red sweet peppercut into strips | 1 |
| green sweet peppercut into strips | 1 |
| ripe tomatoesgrated, or use 200g canned crushed tomatoes | 250g |
| dry white wine | 120ml |
| bay leaf | 1 |
| sweet paprika | 1/2 teaspoon |
| freshly ground black pepper | 1/4 teaspoon |
| fine sea saltplus more to finish | 8g |
| hot wateras needed | 250ml |
| flat-leaf parsleychopped | 20g |
| lemon juice (optional) | 1 tablespoon |
Equipment Needed
- •wide heavy casserole or Dutch oven, 28cm
- •fish scissors or sharp utility knife for trimming cuttlefish
- •box grater for fresh tomato
Instructions
- 1
Prepare the cuttlefish
Pat the cleaned cuttlefish dry. Slice the bodies into wide strips, about two fingers across, and leave the tentacles in pieces that will sit nicely on a spoon. If your fishmonger saved the ink, keep a teaspoon of it for the pot only if you like a darker, deeper sauce.
- 2
Soften the base
Warm the olive oil in a wide heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion with a pinch of the measured salt and cook for 8 minutes, until soft and pale gold. Add the garlic and both peppers, and cook another 5 minutes, just until the peppers begin to slump.
- 3
Start the cuttlefish
Add the cuttlefish and turn it through the oily vegetables for 3 minutes. It will release liquid quickly. Pour in the wine and let it bubble for 2 minutes, then add the grated tomato, bay leaf, paprika, black pepper, and the remaining salt. Cover, lower the heat, and simmer gently for 35 to 40 minutes, until a strip of cuttlefish bends easily but is not fully soft yet.
Don't add the potatoes yet. Cuttlefish needs time to pass from firm to tender, and the potatoes need less time than the sea does. - 4
Add the potatoes
Add the potatoes and just enough hot water to come halfway up the contents of the pot, usually 150 to 250ml. Stir once, cover again, and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes. Shake the pot now and then instead of stirring hard, so the potatoes keep their edges while thickening the sauce.
- 5
Finish the sauce
Uncover the pot for the last 5 to 10 minutes if the sauce looks loose. It should be glossy, red-brown, and thick enough to coat the potatoes, not soupy. Taste for salt. Stir in the parsley and the lemon juice, if using, then let the stew rest off the heat for 10 minutes before serving.
Chef Tips
- •Fresh or properly frozen cuttlefish both work. What you don't want is old cuttlefish that smells sharp or ammoniac. It should smell clean, like the sea after the morning boats come in.
- •Use waxy potatoes, not floury ones. They hold their shape while giving the sauce just enough body. If they collapse into mash, the pot loses its character.
- •Serve it with country bread and a simple bitter green on the side. During Lent, this is a full meal without apology. The fasting calendar knew what it was doing.
Advance Preparation
- •Ask the fishmonger to clean the cuttlefish up to 1 day ahead and keep it covered in the coldest part of the refrigerator.
- •The stew can be cooked 1 day ahead. Rewarm it gently with a splash of water, because potatoes thicken the sauce as they sit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 455g)
Calories
555 calories
Total Fat
25 g
Saturated Fat
4 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
20 g
Cholesterol
250 mg
Sodium
1390 mg
Total Carbohydrates
43 g
Dietary Fiber
6 g
Sugars
8 g
Protein
41 g
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