CALAMARI WITH ROASTED TOMATO MAYONNAISE
For the crispiest calamari, fry your squid like you fry your chicken.
Hello!
How’re things? I Hope all is well.
Welcome back to How I Cook+, thanks for being here and supporting the writing!
Today, we’re talking about crispy fried squid. One of the finest beer snacks going and one that can be deceptively tricky to nail. I’ll run through a few tips and give you a lovely roasted tomato mayonnaise recipe. Yum.
In other news, it’s pop up time! I’ll be cooking at Mother Superior in Nunhead on the 20th and 21st of October. Two evenings of “Wine Snacks”, expect a tight menu of delicious plates to enjoy alongside sumptuous wines poured by the masters over at SE’s favourite wine shop and deli. It’s our first rodeo together and it’s bound to be a good time. As How I Cook+ crew, you get first dibs on tickets before general release tomorrow, scroll down for the ticket link, have a peek at the menu and grab yourself a spot.
I hope to see you there!
B x
I have fondly dubbed this version of calamari KFC, or Kentucky Fried Calamari. Why? I hear you ask… Well, the technique is almost identical to that used when making traditional dredged fried chicken. Soak the meat destined for the fryer in something acidic (milk/buttermilk/pickle brine) and then dredge in a seasoned mixture of flour and modified starch to create that craggly, gnarly crust. It’s a technique as old as time, and one that the you and the Colonel can rely on to deliver results.
If you fancy cleaning the squid yourself, good on ya. If not, I don’t blame you. It can be a messy business, and your fishmonger will be more than happy to take on the challenge. I’ve run through how to break down and clean squid in the method below, so, if you fancy it it’s all there for you. Do refer to the recipe video too for some visual cues.
I use Old Bay Seasoning to add a punch of familiar spicy flavour to my dredge. If you haven’t stumbled across it before, Old Bay is a delicious spice blend from Baltimore, on the Atlantic coast of North America and it’s best mates with seafood. The mixture of celery salt, paprika, white and black pepper bring a subtle, back-of-the-tongue heat to lobster rolls, steamed crab and grilled prawns all over town. It shouldn’t be too hard to find, but if you can’t get hold of it, you can substitute in a decent cajun style spice blend.
The big question when making Calamari… How do we make sure our squid isn’t tough as old boots?