Oscar Espejo is usually to be found up in the wild blue yonder because he is a pilot. But once he’s back on terra firma, he heads for the kitchen and his favorite pastime — cooking.

Here, he conjures up his favorite ethnic foods, mostly Peruvian recipes, taught to him by his grandmother.

Oscar’s wife, Mary, and I are good friends, and when they asked for advice about preparing octopus that is tender, I accepted the challenge. Although he’s tried several times to prepare this ugly denizen of the deep, the dish turns out tough and leathery.

Since octopus is not on my “most favored list” we turned to my library of ethnic books and finally found the solution in Scott Linquist’s book, “Mod Mex,” dedicated to cooking vibrant ethnic flavors at home. We found several recipes for octopus and were amazed that most of them included wine corks in the instructions.

More research ensued and we found information that the addition of wine corks added to the cooking liquid ensured a more tender dish. Experts have argued about this method but most chefs and those who regularly prepare squid and octopus swear that there are enzymes in the corks that insure a more palatable dish.