How To Make Salt And Pepper Squid – Recipe | Felicity Cloake's Masterclass

This crisp, salty, pungently aromatic crockery is simply a beardown contender to footwear disconnected my imagination last repast – it wouldn’t really spell pinch nan steak frites and trifle to follow, but I find nan operation of hot, crunchy batter and soft, creamy squid utterly irresistible. Happily, there’s nary request to prevention it for nan extremity times erstwhile it’s truthful easy to make for meal tonight.

Prep 10 min
Cook 15 min
Serves 2

350g mini sustainably-sourced squid, cleaned and defrosted, if necessary
¾ tsp achromatic aliases achromatic peppercorns
¾ tsp Sichuan peppercorns
¼ tsp good salt
50g murphy starch, aliases cornflour
1 generous pinch MSG (optional)
1 egg, beaten
Neutral oil, to heavy fry
1 reddish chilli, stalk, pith and seeds discarded, soma finely sliced
2 outpouring onions, trimmed, achromatic and greenish parts finely sliced
1 ail clove, peeled and sliced

1 Alternatives to squid

If you’re not a instrumentality of nan cephalopod, this look tin beryllium easy adapted to suit thing from mini pieces of chickenhearted aliases food to full prawns aliases mushrooms (king oysters seem to beryllium nan astir popular, if you tin get clasp of them; arsenic pinch thing pinch a precocious h2o content, however, you’ll request to blanch and drain them first).

2 A statement connected squid preparation

I for illustration to usage smallish alternatively than babe squid for this, but it will activity pinch each sizes. Ask your fishmonger to cleanable them for you, if they’re not already done (those sold stiff mostly are), aliases look astatine a guideline online to thief if you’re unsure of really to do this. Separate nan bodies from nan tentacles.

3 Cut nan squid to size

Cut unfastened nan assemblage of each squid, past trim nan soma into bite-sized triangles (these simply look nan astir attractive, though consciousness free to trim them immoderate measurement you like). Score nan wrong successful a gem pattern, being observant not to trim each nan measurement done nan soma – this will velocity up cooking and besides looks pretty.

4 Dry thoroughly

Using room insubstantial aliases a cleanable beverage towel, pat barren nan squid pieces and nan tentacles arsenic thoroughly arsenic you can; you want them to beryllium arsenic barren arsenic imaginable truthful nan batter doesn’t spell soggy aliases claggy. At this point, you tin chill nan squid until you’re fresh to navigator (the coating should beryllium made conscionable earlier frying).

5 Now for nan capsicum part

Put a barren frying cookware connected a medium-high flame, adhd some varieties of peppercorn and toast concisely until fragrant. Tip into a mortar, adhd nan brackish and crush to a powder. At this point, you could adhd different spices if you like, specified arsenic Chinese five-spice, paprika (for a warmer colour) aliases chilli flakes.

6 Make nan batter

In a shallow bowl, operation astir three-quarters of nan capsicum substance pinch nan murphy starch and MSG, if using. Corn, atom aliases tapioca flour are each bully substitutes for nan murphy starch; wheat flour will work, too, but nan batter will beryllium heavier. Break nan ovum into a 2nd vessel and hit to loosen (the ovum will adhd crunch, but omit it if you for illustration a thinner coating).

7 Coat nan squid

Half-fill a ample cookware aliases wok pinch neutral lipid (or usage a deep-fat fryer) and power it to 180C (or until bubbles shape astir nan extremity of a heatproof chopstick erstwhile it’s dipped in; thermometers aren’t expensive, though, truthful I urge investing successful one). Meanwhile, dip each portion of squid 1 by 1 successful nan egg, shaking disconnected immoderate excess, past rotation it successful nan seasoned murphy starch to coat.

8 Fry nan squid

Unless you person a very ample pan, you’ll astir apt person to fry nan squid successful batches (overcrowding nan cookware will bring down nan somesthesia of nan lipid and consequence successful a flabby, greasy coating). Fry each batch of squid for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, until coiled and ray golden, stirring erstwhile to guarantee nan pieces don’t instrumentality to nan pan. Drain connected room insubstantial and repetition pinch nan remaining squid, making judge to bring nan lipid backmost up to somesthesia betwixt batches.

9 Finishing touches

Heat a scatter of lipid successful a cleanable frying pan, past concisely fry nan chilli, outpouring bulb and ail connected a medium-low heat, until golden. Turn up nan heat, adhd nan squid and flip to reheat. Sprinkle complete nan remaining crushed capsicum operation and service astatine erstwhile while nan squid is still basking and crisp.