The most accessible of seafood, squid can be tender, pliable and friendly with the most exotic ingredients. The main thing is not to let it stand too long on the fire – otherwise instead of the gift of the sea you get a piece of rubber, cut it or not.
Alien
Squid is an amazing creature. Its body consists of an oblong sack in which lie all internal organs. It has a large head with a chitinous beak, eight pairs of arms (or legs) and two tentacles with suction cups. Inside the squid beats three hearts at once. He also has excellent vision, his eyes are arranged on the principle of optical lenses. They can be different sizes and tuned to light waves of different frequencies.
70 kilometers per hour.
This is the average speed of a squid. So rapidly move in the ocean it helps build in the body tube-siphon: she pushes a powerful stream of water, which serves as a motor.
Time heals
The squid must be treated delicately: it is enough to spend 2-3 minutes in the frying pan or half a minute in boiling water to become tender. Then the countdown starts – the longer the squid is cooked, the tougher it becomes. If time is missed, go all the way and braise the squid for at least 40 minutes. It will lose some of its flavor and aroma but it will soften again.
Making a choice
Sometimes the squid is cooked correctly but it’s still tough. You just happened to have such a specimen. How to avoid it? Examine the squid carefully! The abundance of ice, as well as its yellowish color is a sure sign that the squid has been over frozen several times. Look at the skin: it should be smooth and whole, and under the thin film there should be white meat. Squid that changes color to pink during cooking, most likely spoiled.
How to peel a squid:
1. Defrost the squid in advance on the top shelf of the refrigerator. Dry it out.
2. Grasp the squid by the torso with one hand and the tentacles with the other. The squid is slippery, so hold it with a paper towel. In one motion, twist the head and pull out with the insides.
3. Discard the head and insides. Keep the tentacles: they can be used to decorate, for example, a salad, but boil them a couple of minutes longer than the carcass.
4. Fumbling inside the squid chitin plate (it looks like a piece of cellophane), take it out and throw it away. Rinse the hood under cold water.
5. Prying the outer film with your fingers, try to remove it like a stocking. Many eaters advise to scald the squid with boiling water and putting it in cold water to remove the foil more easily. But the squid meat in the boiling water begins to cook unevenly and can become tough.
Calamari Recipes
Squid Noodles.
This is not noodle soup or even just noodles in the usual sense. Rather, something in between a first and second course, more like a squid stew. The calamari, cut into noodles, are stewed in a tomato sauce with spices and the addition of cognac and cream.
Squid noodles.
Italian Soup
If you haven’t made calamari soup yet, you have the opportunity to remedy the situation by making an Italian soup. This soup is not for every day, but rather for a special dinner. However, there can always be a special occasion.
Italian soup
Squid in Asian cuisine is a frequent guest, as well as other seafood. Such a dish with squid will go both to feast and to peace: Asian salad can be prepared for lunch and for a festive feast.
Asian salad
Greek style calamari
A bright dish that tastes just as good is calamari Greek-style. If you do not like garlic, you can omit it – the taste of the dish will not suffer from this.