Salt Pepper Crispy Squid Recipes

Steps:

• Put the oil in a frying pan over high heat. Bash the salt and peppercorns in a mortar and pestle until a bit more than bruised but not quite pulverized, and combine this mixture in a freezer bag with cornstarch, adding the squid and tossing to coat well but not heavily.
• When the oil's very hot - not quite smoking, but nearly - fry the squid (knocking any excess cornstarch back in the bag first) in batches (about 4, probably) and cook each batch for about 1 minute or so until just crisp on the outside and still sweet and tender within. You probably won't need to turn the squid since the oil should bubble up and cook both sides at once, but do if you feel better. Remove to plates lined with a paper towel. After the squid's sat for about half a minute, remove the greasy towel - though sometimes, I dispense with this stage - squeeze lemon over and eat with your fingers, quickly.

Steps:

• Wash the squid tubes and slice them open to lay them flat. Run the tip of your knife along the squid pieces in a diagonal criss-cross pattern (this will help the squid curl up nicely when cooking).
• Place the squid tubes and tentacles in a mixing bowl and cover with the cornstarch, then cover the bowl with a plate or lid. Hold the bowl and lid together firmly and shake to mix well.
• After shaking, use your fingers to massage the cornstarch into the squid until each piece is separate and is as dry as possible. Add more cornstarch if necessary.
• Finely chop the garlic and chiles. Finely slice the spring onions.
• Build your own wok clock: Place your squid bowl at 12 o'clock, then arrange the garlic, chile, salt, pepper and spring onions clockwise around your plate.
• Half-fill a large pot, wok or deep-fryer with vegetable oil and heat to 180°C (350°F), or until the tip of a wooden chopstick or skewer starts to fizz after a second or so in the oil.
• Carefully add the squid pieces and deep-fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Remove the squid pieces carefully with a slotted spoon and drain well on a plate covered with kitchen paper.
• In a separate wok, heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil over a medium-high heat. Add the garlic, chile, salt and pepper, then add the squid and toss together a few times. Transfer to a serving plate and scatter over the spring onion to finish. Serve immediately.

Steps:

• For the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the chili oil, vegetable oil and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
• For the salad: In a medium bowl, combine the greens, carrots and scallions, but do not add the dressing yet. Cover with a damp paper towel and set in the fridge until ready to serve.
• For the squid: Fill a wok or deep fryer halfway with vegetable oil and heat to 350 degrees F, or until a tiny piece of bread browns in 15 seconds. If frying in a wok, make sure that the wok is stable on a burner or wok ring.
• Whisk together the eggs and potato starch, and then coat each squid ring well with the batter. Carefully add the squid rings to the hot oil and fry, in batches, until a light golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Season with salt, pepper and chili flakes.
• When ready to serve, toss the salad with a couple tablespoons of the dressing and top with the hot crispy squid. Garnish with sthe liced scallion greens and serve.
• Cook's Notes: You can use frozen squid rings, but fresh are best.
• This dish makes a great appetizer or a shared main course.

Steps:

• For the calamari: In a large heavy-bottomed skillet, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat to 360 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, stir together the cornstarch and flour with a generous amount of salt and pepper. Toss the squid in the cornstarch, being sure to completely coat.
• Working in batches, lift the squid from the cornstarch, shaking to remove any excess, and carefully place in the oil. Fry until lightly golden and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain on a baking sheet lined with a brown paper bag. Repeat with the remaining squid.
• For the dipping sauce: Combine the soy sauce, chili sauce, lime juice, garlic, scallions and ginger in a small bowl. Stir together and serve with the calamari.

Steps:

• To make the dipping sauce, mix all the ingredients in a small bowl until the sugar has dissolved, then set aside. Mix the cornflour and plain flour with both peppers and 2 tsp sea salt in a large bowl, then set aside. Line a tray with kitchen paper and make sure you have more salt to sprinkle with.
• Heat about 7cm of oil to 180C in a deep fryer, wok or deep pan. If you don't have a thermometer, you can test it with a cube of bread - it should brown in 20 secs. Coat the squid well with the flour mix and fry in batches for about 2 mins each or until crisp. Use a slotted spoon to lift out the squid, then drain on the kitchen paper and sprinkle with a little more salt. Serve the squid scattered with the spring onion and chilli, with the dipping sauce on the side.

Steps:

• Cut the tubes open and check that they are really clean.
• Open them up from one side and lay them with the inside surface facing up. With a really sharp knife, make slanted cuts into the flesh of the squid at 5mm intervals - only shallow, don't cut through.
• Reverse and do it from the opposite direction to make diamond shapes.
• Then cut the tubes into wide strips and toss into the flours, salt and pepper. Shake off any excess - I find a sieve works best.
• When ready to cook, heat the oil to just smoking and add half of the squid sections.
• Cook until they are a pale golden brown. Drain on paper towelling. Repeat with the remaining squid.
• For the sauce, combine the rest of the ingredients.
• To serve, pile the squid into a shallow serving plate and pour over half of the dessing.
• Serve the rest of the dressing separately.

Steps:

• Whisk egg and milk together in a bowl. Mix panko, pepper, and salt in a shallow bowl.
• Lightly dust calamari with flour, shaking off any excess. Dip in egg mixture then panko mixture to coat. Transfer to a plate and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
• Heat oil in a saucepan or deep fryer. Deep-fry calamari in batches until light golden brown, about 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels.