squid

dark_jedi_ire

Hi All

Some Advise needed , Tescos have been doing lately frozen squid rings, Now maybe Im Weird , but I cant get enough of them, However I have no experience with cooking squid from frozen.. Any advise? ( other than deep fry)

Can i microwave them and then add them to a already cooking dish?

Or need to let them defrost then cook them?

How is the best way to Cook them ? and For how long?

And if any recipes are flooting about please forward them on,

Thanks
R

Minder

I wouldn't microwave squid rings to defrost. Put them in a large bowl of water and they should defrost in less than an hour.

Squid takes very little time to cook. It becomes tough if cooked for too long.

As well as deep frying, try adding to a tomato & garlic sauce for pasta.
Fry some garlic,
Chuck in a glass of white wine and cook for a couple of minutes,
Add a can of tomatoes, whizzed with a blender,
Add 1/2 can of water
Season with salt & pepper,
Cook for about 20 minutes until reduced
Add prawns and squid or other shellfish
Add some chopped basil or parsley
Heat through
Serve with spagetti or linguini

Or try with a thai style salad

Make up a plate of salad leaves, cucumber, tomato - whatever takes your fancy
Mix equal quantities of lime juice and thai fish sauce
Add chopped chilli and garlic
Add some palm sugar or brown sugar
For about 1/2 cup of liquid I would add 1/2 teaspoon of sugar
The dressing should be hot, sweet, sour and salty.
Dredge the squid in flour and pan fry until the coating is golden - a few minutes.
Chuck over the salad and dress.
Add prawns or other shellfish for a bit more interest.

dark_jedi_ire

hmmm interesting
Many thanks

Will try the pasta on friday for sure, looking forward to it

Other than deep frying, is there a way of oven cooking battered squid, Say dip in some olive oil and floor and oven cook? ( dont like deep frying so )

Minder

dark_jedi_ire wrote:

hmmm interesting
Many thanks

Will try the pasta on friday for sure, looking forward to it

Other than deep frying, is there a way of oven cooking battered squid, Say dip in some olive oil and floor and oven cook? ( dont like deep frying so )

I can't see that working - it would need a longer time in the oven (rather than the fryer) to cook the flour, which would make the squid very tough.

Batter tends to absorb more oil than breadcrumbs - try panko breadcrumbs if you can get them - a very dry japanese breadcrumb. They are excellent as a coating on all sorts of deep fried food.

Deep fried food seems to have a terrible reputation at the moment - dangerous if you eat three meals a day of deep fried food, but no problem if eaten in moderation.

The Sweeper

Minder wrote:

Deep fried food seems to have a terrible reputation at the moment - dangerous if you eat three meals a day of deep fried food, but no problem if eaten in moderation.

Yeah I'm with you on this one. For years I didn't own a deep fat fryer and avoided frying things. Then I started cooking more and ended up shallow frying things that should have been deep fried - with the result that the food I was shallow frying actually absorbed far more oil, because I was poking it around in a quarter inch of hot oil for about 30 minutes to ensure it was cooked instead of plunging it into a deep fat fryer for 10 mins.

I'd say squid rings in a light tempura batter (make it with soda water - the wee schweppes mixers in a small can are just the right size for a light tempura batter for one to two people) would be your best best - fry them quick and hot, the batter cooks, the sqiud stays tender. Have it, as Minder suggests, with a big salad or other healthy foodstuff. If you're frying batches, blot them on a warmed plate with kitchen towel before serving.