Yesterday, at the fish market, my attention has been drawn by those big scary eyes of the squid. They kind of freak me out, especially when I have to clean up the squid, they have a watery, blank look. Not too delicious and appealing, but once cleaned, stuffed and cooked they are amazing.
So, today I kept myself busy with cooking the squid …well, some brownies too, but those will be the subject of a future post.
Squid stuffed with piquillo pepper sauce, lemon oil and greens
3 squid (medium – big size)
1 small onion
4 garlic cloves
4-5 mushrooms
2 small chopped tomatoes
70 gr chopped pistachio
2-3 tablespoons bread crumbs
salt, pepper, thyme, chilli pepper flakes, fresh herbs
Start by frying the onion with a bit of thyme and chilli flakes in olive oil. When the onion becomes golden add the garlic, fry it for one-2 minutes and then add the mushrooms, tomatoes, squid tentacles and cook for about 5-10 minutes, until the mixture starts coming together and the mushrooms and the squid are cooked. Add the bread crumbs, season with salt and pepper.
Stuff the squid with the mixture and in the end close it with a toothpick. Make sure you don’t overstuff it, otherwise the bugger will explode in the pan. Fry in a pan with olive oil, season it with salt, pepper and a bit of paprika powder.
Piquillo pepper sauce
Bake in the oven a big piquillo pepper or whatever other red pepper and two small tomatoes for half an hour or until they soften. Remove the skin of the pepper and of the tomatoes and mix them with 2 garlic cloves, salt, pepper and 2-3 tablespoons of heavy cream. Blend until smooth. Re-heat for 2-3 minutes until everything comes together.
Serve the squid with the sauce, a touch of good olive oil and some fresh salad…and don’t forget some nice white wine.
