There is one trick to correct the situation if the squid is overcooked. You need to cook the fillet for about another hour. Then it will become soft again, but will noticeably decrease in size.
Thus, knowing the secrets of how to cook squid, you can easily prepare wonderful fillets for salads and other dishes. It’s enough just to properly process unpeeled and frozen squid, navigate the time and understand how and how much to cook the tentacles, rings, carcasses of the sea reptile after boiling, so as not to overcook it and make it tender, soft, and not tasteless.
Note to the housewife: cook frozen squid
Mediterranean cuisine has long been nothing new to us, and squid is an integral part of it, like other seafood. They are not only tasty, but also very healthy, especially for those who care about their figure. Every housewife has several recipes for dishes made from this seafood. But do we know how to cook squid correctly? Here are some tips that will help you cope with this task easily and without errors.
Rules for choosing and preparing squid for cooking
Today you can buy squid in almost any supermarket. Most often they are sold frozen, your choice - with or without tentacles. During storage, squid carcasses cannot be defrosted and cooled again, otherwise the product will be hopelessly spoiled: it will develop a bitter taste and an unpleasant fishy smell. In addition, during cooking the squid will spread and foam during cooking.
If the squid has been stored correctly, its carcass will be firm, the meat will be white, and the outer skin will be pink-brown or grayish-purple.
When properly stored, the squid carcass has this color
Please note: when choosing squid in the store, give preference to unpeeled carcasses. It is by the skin that you can determine the freshness of the product and the correctness of its storage. A grayish or yellow skin, from under which meat with an irregular shade is visible, is a sign of a stale squid.
If you are confident in the freshness and good quality of the squid, you can buy cleaned carcasses. There will be virtually no hassle with them: there is no need to peel off the skin, which means the cooking process will not take much time.
The easiest way to clean frozen squid is boiling water. Just pour boiling water over the carcasses or dip them in it for literally 1-2 seconds. The film that covers the carcass will immediately curl up, and you can easily remove it, and the remains can be washed off in running cold water. Also peel the wings. The chitinous plates inside the squid also need to be removed.
It is necessary to clean squid if you plan to use its meat for salad. However, this is also useful for other dishes: the skin can give a bitter taste and toughness, and the plates are generally unnecessary.
How to cook seafood in a slow cooker or microwave
To cook defrosted and cleaned squid in the microwave, you need to put them in a microwave-safe container, sprinkle with lemon juice, salt and season with spices. Set the microwave to 1000 W and cook for 3 minutes. But after such processing, the squid meat will not be perfectly soft.
You can cook soft squid in a slow cooker in two ways: cook in boiling water for 1 minute or 40 minutes.
To prepare you need:
- Pour water into the multicooker and turn on the “Cooking” mode.
- When the water boils, add the squid carcasses.
- Set the set time, add spices, salt and cook until done.
For squid in cream sauce, the carcasses are cooked in a special way, so a slow cooker is even more suitable for this purpose than a saucepan. The cooking time for the squid in the recipe is 40 minutes, after which they will become soft, but will significantly decrease in size.
Usually squid meat is cooked for no more than 2 minutes, but if you forgot about it and left it on the stove a little longer, the cooking process can be continued, increasing the time to 40 - 50 minutes.
Only after this time has passed will the shellfish meat become soft again. And besides the meat, you will get a flavorful broth.
Sautéed squid with cream sauce
Products:
- squid – 5 pcs.;
- onion – 1 pc.;
- butter – 50 g;
- flour – 50 g;
- milk – 100 ml;
- Dutch cheese – 100 g;
- water – 500 ml;
- bay leaf – 4 pcs.;
- black peppercorns – 7 pcs.;
- salt – 5 g.
Preparation:
- Thawed squid, cleaned of film and remaining entrails, should be cut into 0.5 cm strips.
- Peel and cut a medium onion into half rings.
- Place the onion and squid in a saucepan and add 2 cups of hot water. Add black peppercorns, 2 bay leaves and add 0.5 tsp. salt.
- Bring squid to a boil and reduce heat. Cook for 40 minutes.
- Place the seafood in a sieve and pour the broth into the pan.
- To prepare bechamel sauce, put butter in a saucepan, add flour to it and fry in a saucepan for 2 or 3 minutes until the specific flour smell goes away.
- Pour 100 ml of the broth in which the squid were cooked into the flour and butter, add 100 ml of milk and mix with a whisk. The sauce should be viscous, without lumps.
- Add the sauce to the boiled squid and stir.
- Fill four small baking dishes with squid in aromatic filling. Sprinkle them with grated hard cheese on top to ensure a golden crust after baking.
- Turn on the oven at 200 degrees and bake seafood for 5 minutes.
Sautéed squid under a crispy cheese crust is ready! This wonderful, tender dish can be eaten hot or cold and has an excellent taste.
How to cook squid depends on the requirements of the recipe. Half-raw seafood that is simply poured boiling water for 10 minutes retains more nutrients. But if you cook the squid for more than half an hour, they will also turn out soft and tasty.
Cooking features
The main thing to remember during the cooking process is that squid should be cooked for no more than 2-3 minutes. Otherwise, the meat may acquire a “rubbery” consistency and lose a lot of flavor. When the squid turns completely white in boiling water, it is considered ready.
It is most convenient to cook squid carcasses in small portions. Place 1-2 carcasses in a pan of boiling water, remove and add the next ones. During cooking, you can use, in addition to salt, any seasonings and spices: pepper, dill, parsley, cloves, basil.
The finished squid carcass turns white
There are several simple ways to cook squid.
- Place a pan of water over high heat, add salt and spices to taste, and boil. Throw a couple of carcasses into boiling water and hold for no longer than 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon.
- If you have a lot of squid meat, use this method. Pour enough water into the pan to fit all the meat, add salt and spices. When the water boils over high heat, dip the prepared squid into it. Wait until the water boils again, cover the pan with a lid, remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes. After this, the water can be drained.
- You don't have to defrost the squid before cooking. In this case, the carcasses are immersed in boiling water for 1 minute, after which the pan is removed from the heat and infused in water for 3-4 minutes.
- If you don't want to clean the squid before cooking, you can throw it into boiling water straight from the package without cutting it up. Frozen, unpeeled carcasses are cooked for about 7 minutes, defrosted - no more than 3 minutes. After this, pour cold water over them and you can easily peel the meat.
Boil 1–1.5 liters of water, add salt and spices. Place thawed and prepared carcasses. Cover the pan with a lid and remove from heat. After 10 minutes, the meat will infuse and be ready. As the water gradually cools, the squid carcasses will not become tough.
These rules apply equally to whole squid, rings and fillets.
Squid salads
Squid salads can be found in any cookbook and on websites on the Internet. Usually the housewife has several recipes at her disposal, but she always wants to try something new.
Squid salad with pickled cucumbers
For four servings of salad you need to prepare the following products:
- 500g squid; - one can of canned peas; - four pickled cucumbers; - half a head of onion; - dill, salt, pepper; - for dressing you need three tablespoons of sour cream.
Place the squid carcasses in boiling water and cook for 3 minutes, then drain the water, rinse the squid in cold water and dry or allow the liquid to drain. Peel the onion and chop finely. Cut the cucumbers into small cubes. Cut the squid into thin strips. Mix chopped ingredients, add canned peas. Mix everything, salt, pepper, add chopped dill. Season the finished salad with sour cream.
Squid salad with vegetables
For cooking you will need products:
- 300 g squid fillet; - three pieces each of boiled potatoes, canned cucumbers and boiled carrots; - 200g canned peas; - salt, pepper, sugar; - for dressing 100g of mayonnaise.
Clean the squid, first rinse with boiling water, and cook for 3 minutes in salted water. Boil potatoes and carrots, cool, peel cucumbers. Cut all the products into strips and put them in one bowl.
Mix mayonnaise with salt, pepper and sugar. Dress the salad. You can decorate the finished dish with lettuce leaves and cucumber slices. You can use Korean-style carrots in this salad.
Squid salad with seaweed
To prepare you will need:
- 100g squid; - one carrot; — 250g canned seaweed; - one head of onion; - vegetable oil; - salt, pepper, parsley.
Clean the squid and cook in salted water for no more than three minutes. Cool, remove liquid and cut into thin strips. Chop the onion and cut the carrots into small cubes. Place the chopped products in one bowl, add seaweed, salt, pepper, season with a small amount of vinegar and vegetable oil. The salad should be placed in the refrigerator for 10-12 hours. After this, garnish with green parsley sprigs and serve.
Squid salad with tomatoes
To prepare four servings of salad you will need:
— 300g squid; - 150-200g cheese; - two tomatoes; - one clove of garlic; - for dressing 100g of mayonnaise.
Cleaned squids need to be boiled in salted water for 1-2 minutes. Cool, remove remaining water with paper towels. Cut the tomatoes and squid into thin strips and grate the cheese. Mix all ingredients, add garlic, passed through a press. Stir and season the salad with mayonnaise.
Salad "Jubilee"
To prepare the salad, you can use fresh or canned squid.
You will need products:
— 250-300g squid; — 300g fresh apples or pickled cucumbers; — 300g boiled chicken fillet; - mayonnaise for dressing; - to decorate the salad, prepare one boiled egg, one red pepper or tomato, lemon.
For this salad, it is better to buy canned squid, but you can also use boiled ones. Dry the squid in a sieve or place on a napkin or paper towel. Finely chop all ingredients, mix, add oil from canned squid, season with mayonnaise. Place the prepared salad in a salad bowl and garnish.
Salad “Royal Joy”
To prepare you will need:
- 500g squid; - 150g red caviar; — 200g crab sticks; - 10 eggs; - parsley, dill, mayonnaise.
In the salad we use only egg whites. We cut all the products into strips, mix, and season with mayonnaise. Decorate the salad with whole sprigs of parsley and place a little caviar on the leaves.
Spicy salad with squid
To prepare a spicy salad you will need the following ingredients:
- 200 g squid; - two cucumbers; - one carrot; - a head of onion; - two cloves of garlic; - a tablespoon of vinegar; - greenery; - vegetable oil.
Boil the squid carcasses in salted water for three minutes, cool and cut into thin strips. Chop the onion finely, carrots into strips. Mix. Heat the vegetable oil and pour boiling oil over the prepared products. Let it sit for 30 minutes.
Cut the cucumbers into strips, season with vinegar, add salt, pepper, and pressed garlic. Mix with chilled ingredients and place in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. After this, put the salad in a beautiful salad bowl and garnish with parsley and dill.
Squid salad with rice and cheese
To prepare the salad you will need:
- half a kilogram of squid; - 200g rice; - 200g cheese; - two eggs; - salt; - mayonnaise or sour cream for dressing.
Cook the squid in boiling salted water for three minutes, boil the rice and eggs separately. After cooling, cut all products into thin slices and add rice. Mix. Season with sour cream or mayonnaise, add salt and pepper, or use seasonings that are familiar to you. You can also add canned sweet corn to this salad.
Squid salad with mushrooms
To prepare the salad you need:
- 500g squid; - four eggs; — 500g oyster mushrooms; - two small heads of onions; - 200g mayonnaise.
Wash the mushrooms and boil for 5 minutes in salted water, drain in a colander, and let the water drain. Boil the squid in salted water for no more than 3 minutes. Peel the onion and pour boiling water over it.
Finely chop the mushrooms, cut the squid into thin strips, peel the boiled eggs and cut them into cubes. Place the ingredients in one bowl, mix and season with mayonnaise.
Squid salad “Neptune”
To prepare the salad you need the following products:
- 500g squid; — 200g crab sticks; - one glass of rice; - 200g seaweed; - a can of canned corn; - salt pepper; - olive mayonnaise.
Boil the rice, clean and cook the squid. Finely chop the crab sticks and squid, add rice and season with mayonnaise. Add seaweed and corn. The amount of corn and cabbage can be added at your discretion. Salt and pepper.
Chinese squid salad
To prepare the salad you will need:
— 3 squid carcasses; - 300g Chinese cabbage; — 150g suluguni cheese or feta cheese; - 200g ham; - olive oil or mayonnaise.
Cut the boiled squid into strips. We also cut Beijing cabbage, feta cheese and ham into strips. Mix the products, season with mayonnaise or olive oil, salt and pepper.
Fried squid in a frying pan, deep-fried, in breadcrumbs and batter are very tasty and appetizing.
Working on mistakes: correcting our own mistakes
Often the first pancake comes out lumpy, and if you are still inexperienced in cooking squid, mistakes cannot be avoided. The most common problem is that the meat has been in boiling water for a long time, which means it has become tough. It turns out that this is not difficult to fix. Place the carcasses in boiling water again and cook for as long as possible, at least half an hour. The meat will become soft again, although it will almost halve in volume. It may also lose its taste.
Overcooked squid can be “reanimated” by stewing in sour cream or cream
To avoid an unpleasant taste and toughness, cut the overcooked squid into slices and simmer them over low heat for 20 minutes in cream or sour cream. Thanks to this method, you can correct the situation if you have over-salted the meat. This squid is no longer suitable for a salad, but as a separate dish with a side dish it will perfectly complement dinner for the whole family.
We hope our tips will help you enjoy the rich taste of properly cooked squid meat and avoid the most common mistakes. Bon appetit and comfort to your home!
How to select and prepare squid for cooking
Fresh squid can rarely be found on sale; as a rule, frozen carcasses arrive on the shelves. What you need to pay attention to when choosing seafood:
- the fillet must be white (otherwise the product is spoiled);
- skin color can be either grayish-whitish or light pink;
- Large squids, which have dense, elastic meat, are suitable for the salad, and small carcasses are ideal for stuffing, as they are tender and soft;
- frozen fillets should be easily separated from each other; if the carcasses are stuck together, they have already been frozen several times;
- Eating expired products is hazardous to health, so pay attention to the expiration date.
Before cooking seafood at home, it should be defrosted. To do this, the mollusks are placed in a container with cold or warm water (but not hot) and left for a while. After defrosting, the carcasses should be peeled. The easiest way to remove the film is to first pour boiling water over the product. It is necessary to clean squid not only by removing the skin, but also the insides and bones.
How to clean raw frozen squid
A raw shellfish is a rather terrifying sight, especially for young housewives who believe that its cleansing is a whole science. In fact, everything is quite simple, the main thing is to follow the sequence of steps:
- Leave the frozen carcass at room temperature for 1–2 hours to defrost.
- Pull her head, after which all the insides will be removed.
- Use a knife to cut off the tentacles, starting from eye level.
- The tentacles contain a beak; it is hard and not suitable for food. They carefully break it off, making sure that no fragments remain.
- Now they take out the spine, which looks like a long strip of plastic, feel it with your fingers and pull it out.
- Afterwards, the fillets are washed with water and dried well with a towel.
- To remove the film, the squid is first dipped in boiling water, then in cold water.
- After this, the skin will curl up and can be easily removed by hand in a few seconds.
How long to cook squids until they are soft?
Some housewives do not know how to properly cook squid, so they avoid preparing dishes containing this ingredient. Meanwhile, this is a very simple process that does not require any special skills. The main thing is to prevent prolonged cooking of seafood. If you keep the carcasses in boiling water for longer than the required time, instead of tender and soft meat, you will get tough and tasteless meat. How many minutes to cook squid? It all depends on the form in which you are going to prepare the product.
Peeled
Delicious seafood is prepared very easily and quickly. How to cook peeled squid:
- fill the pan with water, wait until it boils;
- add salt and seasonings to the water;
- Place thawed and peeled shellfish in boiling water for 2 minutes (the meat should turn white), then drain the water;
- if you have overcooked the product, leave the pan on the fire for another 30 minutes - during this time the fillet will become soft again;
- After boiling the carcasses, cut them into rings and serve with beer.
Unrefined
How to cook squid with film? There is no big difference in the method of cooking unpeeled and “naked” carcasses - the difference lies in the time required for cooking. How to boil squid in skin:
- defrost the carcasses;
- place a pan of water on the stove;
- when the liquid begins to boil, add bay leaf, salt, allspice;
- lower the carcasses into the pan, turn off the heat and cover the container with a lid so that the steam does not leave it;
- After 10 minutes, remove the seafood from the water.
How long and how to cook squid for salad so that it is not tasteless
Typically, squids do not have a distinct taste of their own. They can be cooked with spices to give them a more sophisticated feel. Below it is written how long and how to cook squid for salad so that it is not tasteless.
Ingredients
- Squid – 0.5 kg
- Water - 0.25 l
- Spices
- Lemon juice – 2 tbsp. spoons
- Salt
Preparation
- First, add salt, bay leaf, and red pepper to the water.
- The water is brought to a boil, the cleaned carcasses are quickly lowered into it, and after 30 seconds they are taken out. The pleasant taste will surprise you.
Another way to prepare squid for salad: so that they are not tasteless, they are marinated in lemon juice.
How to cook squid, frozen in rings
It is more convenient to cook a whole clam than rings, since it will be difficult to quickly remove all the pieces from boiling water. In addition, rings are easier to digest than large carcasses. However, if you have already purchased sliced goods, there are several ways to cook squid rings:
- First option. Boil water, adding spices to taste. This can be bay leaf, white/black pepper, herbs, etc. Using a slotted spoon, place a couple of rings in boiling water, counting to 10, and remove them. So boil all the pieces one by one. Serve the cooked dish chilled.
- Second option. Pour all the rings into boiling water, wait a minute and remove the container from the heat. The pieces can be removed from the water after 3 minutes. You shouldn’t keep them in liquid for longer, otherwise they will become “rubbery.”
- Third method. Boil half a liter of water and season it with spices. Place the thawed rings inside, close the dish and immediately remove from the stove. Do not open the lid for 5 minutes, after which the dish will be ready to eat.
- Fourth way. Fill the multicooker halfway with water, turn on the “Stew” option. Add seasonings (you can use paprika, any pepper, marjoram, cloves, lemon juice, etc.). After the liquid boils, place the rings in the bowl and leave to cook for 1-2 minutes. You can tell when they are ready by their white color - then the pieces can be removed.
How to fry squid
Frying squid is as easy as boiling it. They can be served as a main dish, and served as a side dish with rice or boiled potatoes. Clean two squids and cut into rings. Cut two small cloves of garlic into thin slices, and two onions into half rings. Pour two tablespoons of olive or any vegetable oil into a frying pan and fry the onion and garlic. When the onion turns golden, add a tablespoon of tomato paste, salt, pepper and add the squid. In two minutes, you can serve the fried squid, delicious and juicy.
How to fry squid in breadcrumbs
To prepare squid in breadcrumbs, you need to clean the squid and cut into rings or strips. Beat a couple of chicken eggs with a whisk, add salt and pepper. Pour breadcrumbs into a saucer. Heat a frying pan with vegetable oil. Dip the squid pieces into beaten eggs and breadcrumbs and place in a frying pan. The squids are fried for no more than five minutes, and they need to be turned over so that they are evenly browned on all sides and fried. Place the cooked squid on a plate and garnish with herbs.
Squid rings cooked in deep-fried batter are very tasty and beautiful.
Clean one kilogram of squid and cut into thin rings. For the batter, mix half a kilogram of flour with half a liter of light beer, add two eggs and a teaspoon of salt. Stir until a homogeneous mass is formed, the thickness of which resembles sour cream. Heat a large amount of vegetable oil in a deep frying pan. Dip the squid rings into the batter and then fry in boiling oil for 2-3 minutes. The rings should turn golden. Remove the fried rings from the oil and place in a colander or on a plate lined with a paper towel to remove any remaining fat. Serve the squid with white sauce.
You can cook squid in another batter, for example, milk batter. To do this, mix milk with eggs and add sifted flour. Stir, break up lumps, achieve a uniform batter consistency and fry the squid in vegetable oil.
Squid fried in sour cream
To prepare this dish you will need the following products:
- 1.5 kilograms of squid; - two carrots; - three heads of onions; - four cloves of garlic; - 0.5 kg of sour cream; - vegetable oil; - salt.
Clean the squids and rinse under running water. Cut them into strips. Cut the onion into half rings, carrots into strips.
Pour vegetable oil into a deep frying pan and heat. Place onions and carrots in it and fry for 10 minutes. Add garlic cut into thin slices. When the vegetables are fried, add the squid and fry for another three minutes. Salt and pepper. Pour in sour cream, stir, and cook for five minutes under a closed lid.
Fried squid with garlic and bacon
To prepare squid with garlic and bacon you need the following ingredients:
— 800g squid; - 100g bacon; - 6 cloves of garlic; - salt pepper; - parsley.
Bacon should be cut into thin slices. Chop the garlic. Cleaned and washed squids are cut into rings or strips. Place a frying pan without oil on the fire and fry the bacon slices over low heat. When the bacon is browned and fat appears in the pan, remove the bacon pieces from the pan.
Increase the heat and fry the garlic in the resulting fat, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds, then add the squid. You need to fry the squid for 3-4 minutes, then add the bacon back, stir and remove from heat.
Fried squid with potatoes
For cooking you will need the following products:
- two squid carcasses; - five potatoes; - one carrot; - one head of onion; - 150g sour cream; - half a lemon; - dried basil, curry, salt; - vegetable oil; - green onions.
Peel and wash potatoes and carrots. Cut the potatoes into strips, grate the carrots on a coarse grater, peel the onion and chop finely. Heat a frying pan, pour in vegetable oil, add potatoes and fry over high heat for five minutes. Reduce heat, cover the pan and fry for another seven minutes.
Add lemon juice, spices to sour cream and stir.
Clean the squid and cook for three minutes. Cool, cut into strips. Place squid, carrots and onions in a frying pan with potatoes. Add sour cream and fry for 5 minutes. Sprinkle the finished dish with green onions and serve.
Fried squid with mushrooms
To prepare you will need:
— 1 kg of squid; - 500g champignons; - two heads of onions; - salt; - vegetable oil.
Cut the cleaned squid into strips. Wash the mushrooms and cut into cubes. Peel and chop the onion.
Heat a frying pan, pour in vegetable oil and fry mushrooms and squid for five minutes. Then add salt, onion and fry for another 25 minutes.
Fried squid with mushrooms can be served as a hot or cold appetizer.
Fried squid with vegetables
For cooking you will need products:
- 500g squid; - two carrots; - two tomatoes; - one head of onion; - two tablespoons of vegetable oil; - parsley; - salt pepper; - one tablespoon of soy sauce.
Cleaned squids are cut into strips. Peel the onions and carrots, cut the carrots into strips, and cut the onions into half rings. Tomatoes are doused with boiling water, peeled and cut into small pieces.
Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan and fry onions and carrots. Then add squid, tomatoes, soy sauce, salt and pepper. Fry for five minutes, stirring constantly.
Place the squid on a dish and garnish with parsley leaves.
You can make cutlets from squid meat that are very tender and flavorful. They can be fried in a pan or steamed.
Wash and clean half a kilogram of squid. Soak two slices of white bread in milk. Hard boil one egg. Peel two small onions and a couple of cloves of garlic.
Pass the squid through a fine grinder. Then pass the resulting minced meat again along with the soaked bread, onion, egg and garlic. Add salt, pepper and a little ground rosemary to the minced meat. Stir and whisk. Make small cutlets, roll in breadcrumbs mixed with sesame seeds. Fry the cutlets in vegetable oil. Serve with cream sauce and vegetable salad.
Stuffed squids look very impressive and will decorate your table.
Frozen squid: how to cook and how much?
On the Russian market, this seafood is presented mainly in frozen and canned form. Chilled squid is a rarity. Some unscrupulous sellers sometimes sell a defrosted product under the guise of a chilled product.
To make squid tasty, you need to choose it correctly. They must be well frozen. Defrosted carcasses, that is, those that have been defrosted and then frozen, will taste bitter and treacherously creep apart during the cooking process.
How to quickly clean squid
If you have squids with heads and tentacles, then first you need to get rid of all the inedible parts.
Toshiyuki IMAI/Flickr.com
Take the squid carcass in one hand, and with the other grab the head near the eyes. Gently pull - along with the head and tentacles, you will remove part of the insides. The rest can be removed when you skin it.
This is how you remove the insides of squid
The tentacles are usually discarded with the head, but they can be used. To do this, you need to cut them off near the eyes. Be sure to remove the squid's mouth when doing this - it is hard and hides among the tentacles.
But usually you don’t have to bother with all this. In stores, as a rule, they sell frozen squid in a semi-cut form: without heads and tentacles.
The carcasses (biologists would say the mantle) are covered with a red and white film, which is laborious and time-consuming to clean with a knife.
It’s not always possible to pull the skin off a squid with a stocking.
To quickly clean squid, you need to pour boiling water over them, keep them in hot water for about a minute and rinse them under running water. Some housewives treat carcasses like they treat pasta: pour boiling water in a colander and immediately turn on cold water.
Under the influence of high temperature, the skin will easily and quickly come off the carcass. You only have to remove its residue when washing. Next, the squid can be cut lengthwise to remove the chitinous plate and entrails.
Squids have a transparent "spine" that looks like a piece of plastic.
But you don’t have to disturb the cylindrical shape of the mantle: the insides and chitinous plate can be easily removed with your fingers. Whole squid can be stuffed or cut into rings.
How to clean?
Before cooking, seafood must be cleaned. This is very easy to do. We will need a deep plate and pre-defrosted squid meat. Cleaning a clam involves removing its skin and internal plates. To remove the skin, just pry it with your fingernail, after which it can be easily removed. Don't believe me? Try it yourself and see for yourself! If any parts of the skin remain, the squid must be scalded with boiling water, and then the curdled film must be removed.
To remove the plates, you need to turn the carcass inside out; the hard parts that appear on the surface must be removed with your fingers. They easily leave the mollusk.
After the shellfish has been cleaned, it should be washed under running water, and then you can start boiling it.
In this five-minute video you can find recommendations for cleaning squid:
How to cook squid
Method 1. “Cold start”
Place the cleaned squids in a saucepan with cold water. Place the pan on the stove and turn on medium heat. When the water warms up, add a little salt, and when it boils, turn it off immediately and catch the carcasses.
Like many other seafood, squid does not tolerate heat treatment well. If you cook the shellfish for a long time, the meat will be tough, like a rubber sole.
The main secret to cooking squid is not to overcook it.
It is important not to delay the moment of boiling. You literally have to stay close to the pan.
Method 2. Boiling in hot water
Bring lightly salted water to a boil. When the first bubbles appear, launch the squid. The boiling will stop for a while, and as soon as it resumes, you need to turn it off immediately.
Here, too, it is very important not to overcook the meat in boiling water.
Method 3. Filling with boiling water
Many consider this method the most correct and claim that squid prepared in this way is the most tender and tasty.
You need to fill it three times. The first time is when you pour boiling water over the squid to remove the skin.
The second time you need to leave the peeled shellfish in boiling water for one minute. After this, rinse the carcasses with water and boil the kettle again. After the third pouring (holding time is also 60 seconds) and washing, the squids are ready to eat. You can add salt to the bowl each time you pour it.
Some housewives immediately cut or stuff them. Others remove the still transparent film from the carcasses.
Without this film the squid is even softer
How to cook seafood so that it is soft?
If you choose whole squid carcasses, then in the process of preparing them you need to follow certain rules.
Preparation:
- To keep the squids soft, they must be thoroughly rinsed with filtered or mineral water before cooking.
- It is not necessary to cook squid meat. To cook them, heat the water to a boil.
- Squids must be peeled from the surface skin. Raw frozen squids are very difficult to clean, so you can pour boiling water over them.
- Place the frozen squid in a separate bowl and pour boiling water over it so that the water completely covers the carcasses.
- After the water has cooled, carefully drain it and pour boiling water over the squid again. This algorithm must be repeated three times. After this, the squid meat can be eaten.