Magnificent specimens of male octopus They wait their turn in ultra-freezing rooms in Costa da Morte The master hand of chef Manuel Costiña from the Retiro da Costiña restaurant in Santa Comba (A Coruña), Those who waited patiently for three months to bring this seafood delicacy to their kitchen to ensure complete breakdown of the cephalopod’s muscle fibers and Obtain a softened product for traditional baking who gives up water and rejects the salt and pepper of the classic pulpo a feira (octopus at the fair) or Galician-style octopus served with cachelos.
“I buy octopus from Portocubelo,” the three-year-old says as he examines a two-kilogram specimen that will make a delicious snack. To open your Garatuxa (Caresses) tasting menu Starts delicately and smoothly Baked Coristanco potatoes.
In the octopus breeding and breeding sanctuary, Chef Manuel Costiña of Costa da Morte selects the best-fed specimens with crabs and shrimps from the brave and cold Atlantic, a biosphere reserve filled with algae, fish and shellfish.
However, Why does Costiña prefer men to women? “The ability of females to lay eggs and care for them is a matter of quality they often do not eat and their tissues become chewy”, He proves this in the kitchen of his family restaurant, which annually reaffirms the Michelin star it received in 2008.
In a hot, shallow pot, Costiña introduces the defrosted octopus, clean and with its tentacles revised. “It’s time to cover the pot, turn the heat to medium, and wait about 50 minutes for the two-pound piece to release its own gelatinous juice,” he adds. After cooking in its own juice It secretes a reddish fluid full of collagen, “a delicious broth that can be used for other preparations.” Continue before coating the cut crispy tentacles with their own juices and salicornia. The octopus should be soft but firm. If you want to make it Feira or Galician style, just add coarse salt, red pepper and extra virgin olive oil.
“You don’t need anything else,” Costiña says as he examines other appetizers he serves in the restaurant’s back room. a ‘steak tartare’ from kashena cow matured in seawater; Santoña anchovy and warm Cobransosa oil; egg yolk fritters with truffles and goose and eel pasta.
Galicia’s best product
Dining room with seven tables for 28 people serving 14 employees, Where the gastronomic exhibition of the best Galician product continues. It starts with some cherry tomatoes, basil sorbet and “Galician” gazpacho; air from fried scallops, podium water and corals; two types of lobster, coral, wakame and mussel emulsion; roasted sea bass, pepper cream and lemon pilpil; braised lamb shank and seasonal vegetables and A selection of Galician cheeses with peaches, thyme and lemon cubes to close the feast Paired with an amazing winery with over a thousand references.
A whiskey from 1940
At the end of the meal, Costiña invites customers to the after-dinner room. In addition to selected Cohiba Havana cigars and all kinds of liquor, he treasures bottles of very expensive whiskey, including Macallan, distilled in 1940 during World War II. It’s in the middle of the advance of Nazi troops and just before the distillery is forced to temporarily close its doors on the orders of Winston Churchill.
Near the restaurant, just three kilometers away, the Costiña family recently opened Retiro Costiña Wellness & Villas. An area where you can enjoy nature, gastronomy and time inspired by the castles inhabited by the Celts.
This 21st-century castle consists of seven villas with no right angles. Small in size, designed to allow air and water to circulate underneath, integrated with a natural space and covered Landscaped.
“People were coming to the restaurant to dine or dine and They then had no place to stay or had to sleep very close to Santiago de Compostela. that’s why we designed this project to ensure the completion of the experience,” Costiña concludes.