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1
Separate heads from tentacles, and cut the larger heads in half; cut the tentacles into two or four bunches. Marinate the baby octopi for at least one hour in a mixture of Ponzu sauce, lemon juice, wine, shallot and garlic. You may also add the mushrooms here.
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2
Meanwhile, rinse the potatoes, cut out any eyes, and slice about 1/4 inch. Place on baking pan and mix in ground pepper, tarragon, and rosemary, to taste. (Fresh is nicest, but dried will do.) Add a little olive oil to prevent burning.
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3
Roast in pre-heated 350 F degree oven for 15-20 minutes.
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4
Drain marinate from the baby octopi into cooking pot (dimensions of your pot are important, you want as small a surface area as possible to minimize addition of water). At this point, add the 1/4 cup water.
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5
Bring to boil, reduce to simmer.
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6
Add octopi, and additional water to cover, if needed. (You could ainstead add any or all of the other liquids to taste, as additional ideas)
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7
Bring liquid back to a rapid simmer, not a full-fledged boil. For baby octopi, simmer this way 15-20 minutes. Avoid too much liquid, but also avoid burning.
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8
Time your finish time to coincide more or less with the potato finish time, with the potatoes finishing first. Layer potatos on a serving plate, and pour the octopus dish over this. If you have too much liquid, then strain your octopus out and place over potatoes, although be sure some of its cooking marinate is served.
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9
For a little spice, add the crushed hot red pepper flakes at serving time. It's a nice extra bit of spice.
