Whole squid with a twist

Long ago in Korea, squid was expensive, so when Mum bought a squid, nothing went to waste – we ate the lot from top to bottom. This isn’t my mum’s old recipe, but by adding butter it helps tone down the heat of the chilli. Also, for lovers of seafood, squid ink in this recipe as a magical ingredient, not only to colour the dish but also lend a touch of gourmet flavour.

Credit: SBS Food

• serves

  2

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 1 red capsicum, quartered
• pinch sea salt
• pinch pepper
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 10 ml squid ink
• 10 g flour
• 10 ml water
• 1 red onion, finely diced
• ½ cucumber
• 2 mint leaves, finely chopped
• 10 ml lemon juice
• 1 whole squid
• 1 tbsp butter

The following recipe has been tested and edited by SBS Food and may differ slightly from the podcast.

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Using three-quarters of the capsicum, sprinkle with salt and pepper, drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil and cook in the oven for 20 minutes. When cooked, remove from the oven and put in a blender to form a puree.

Combine the ink, flour and water and mix well. In the preheated oven, paint the mixture onto baking paper and bake for 5 minutes or until it becomes it crispy.

Finely dice the red onion, cucumber, the remaining quarter of the capsicum and the mint leaves. Combine together with pepper, salt and lemon juice to make a salsa.

Wash the squid and remove the head and legs, then carefully cut down one side of the tube and peel away the purple skin. Remove the “guts” and carefully set aside the ink sac. Gently make criss-cross incisions in the tube and then cut the tube lengthways into 6 pieces. Finely dice the head and legs.

In a large frypan over high heat, add the butter and cook the diced head and legs, tossing for about 3-4 minutes, then add the tubes and cook further over high heat until ready. You know when the tubes are cooked when they start to form a shape and roll up. Be careful not to overcook as you don’t want chewy squid. The best way is to taste-test the squid.

Serve on a large platter, paint on the pureed capsicum and squid ink and then place the squid around the platter and top it with the salsa.

Photography by Jacqui Way.

Chung Jae Lee’s new cookbook, Korean Cookbook - A twist on the traditional, is available here.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.