Nov 29, 2018
"Marine Style" flask with octopus, Aegean Civilisation of
Crete,
the Late Minoan Bronze Age from c.
1500-1450 BC
Throughout the world and throughout time, people and cultures have
both revered and feared this eight-limbed, legendary Cephalopod -
the octopus. We’ll look at the mythology and folklore of the
octopus, their physiology and behaviour; which all strengthen their
reputation as symbols of strength, intelligence and mystery. We’ll
look at artworks by Japanese master Hokusai, resin artist Keng Lye,
potter Tammy Garcia and illustrator Esther Van Hulsen. Plus I make
takoyaki - round octopus pancake balls!
Show Notes:
00:00-01:45
Intros
01:45-06:30
Octopus background history, myths, characteristics, origins,
ancient history,
06:30-16:00
art, late minoan marine style flask, tammy garcia, Hokusai, Esther
Van Hulsen, Keng Lye
16:00-19:15
Intelligence of the octopus, Octopolis, Octlantis, escape artists,
anatomy, physiology, sex lives and child rearing
19:15-20:40
Jean Painleve octopus short films
20:40-25.25
Takoyaki and Michiru!!!
25:25-27:25
Closing
27:25-28:07
Cringey jingle
Blackware pottery with octopus
motifs by potter Tammy
Garcia
A block print depicting the folklore
tale of Akkorokamui from Hokkiado, Japan, date and artist
unknown
Hokusai’s 1814 shunga print, its
Japanese title is Tako to Ama, translated to English as Girl Diver
and Octopuses and also widely known in English as
Dream of the Fisherman's Wife
from Shingu Gallery
retouched singular image of
Hokusai’s 1814 shunga print, Tako to Ama
Octopuses as depicted by artist
Utagawa Kuniyoshi from the story of Princess Tamatori and the
Dragon King.
Illustration by Esther van Hulsen made with
ink extracted from a 95 million year old octopus fossil by
paleontologist
Jørn Hurum. The piece is exhibited together with the fossil in
the Natural History Museum in Oslo, Norway.
95 million year old octopus fossil
found in 2009 and it’s ink, extracted by paleontologist
Jørn Hurum and then . The piece is exhibited together with the
fossil in the Natural History Museum in Oslo, Norway. ink as used
in Esther Van
Hulsen’s octopus illustration as seen above.
Singapore based artist Keng Lye’s
resin and acrylic 3-D octopus on an enamel plate
Takoyaki ingredients
Cooked octopus
Takoyaki - first batch
I used the Japan
Centre recipe for Takoyaki:
Ingredients
batter:
200g flour,
2 eggs
, 450ml water,
pinch of dashi
stock
fillings:
100g fresh boiled octopus, chopped
, 1 bunch spring
onion, chopped
red pickled ginger
, tempura flakes
toppings:
takoyaki sauce,
japanese mayonnaise
, aosa powdered
seaweed (or aonori)
, katsuobushi, bonito flakes
How To Prepare
1. Start by creating the batter. Grab a large bowl and mix together
2 eggs, 200g of flour, 450ml of water and a little dashi stock. Set
this aside. If you have the ready-made okonomiyaki flour, follow
the directions for making the batter and you’re good to go.
2. Place your takoyaki plate on the gas stove on medium heat and
heat up a small amount of oil in each hole.
3. Cut up your octopus into small pieces. Place a piece of octopus
in each of the semi-circular holes, and then fill up each hole to
the top with the batter mix. You can even overflow the batter out
of the hole to make it easier to flip them later.
4. Now you can add the chopped spring onion, red pickled ginger and
tempura flakes to each hole. The amount you add is up to you, but
only a small amount of each will give enough flavour.
5. Once the takoyaki are about half cooked, about 1-2 minutes, you
will need to flip them over. The best way to do this is to use a
small wooden skewer to poke the outside of the batter and flip it
over within the hole. This takes a bit of practice to get done
smoothly so keep trying if you are making a mess.
6. You can usually only flip each takoyaki about three quarters of
the way round so allow it to cook a little more before flipping it
again. By now, all your takoyaki should be round so keep rotating
them in the holes to make sure that they cook evenly on all sides.
This will take about 3-4 minutes until golden brown on the outside.
7. Place a few takoyaki on a plate and smother them with loads of
takoyaki sauce and Japanese mayonnaise. Then sprinkle a bit of
powdered seaweed and some bonito flakes on top and enjoy. Allow to
cool slightly and enjoy hot.
Takoyaki - second batch
Liguria Polpo salad
Greco Octopus salad