Spanish Tapas Baby Calamari with Garlic and Parsley
A Spanish tapas that serves 6 as a snack
500g/1lb 2oz baby calamari/ squid or you could also use medium-sized squid tube
3 cloves of garlic
large hand full of parsley
1 lemon
Optional - 1/2 long red chill, diced (you can deseed it for less heat)
sea salt to taste
METHOD:
Firstly, prepare the garlic, parsley and lemon, cut into wedges for serving, chop the parsley and dice the garlic and chilli if using.
Remove the stems/ germs/ sprouts (referred to in many different ways) from the garlic cloves before using them. Whether or not they’re green (but certainly if they are) they can add a certain bitterness to dishes, which can be considerably enhanced by removing them. To do this, slice the cloves in half lengthways and use the tip of a sharp knife to lift it out from each half and discard it.
For the baby calamari, depending on the size of your pan, this may need to be divided in two: Shake off any extra liquid from the calamari. Place in a hot dry frying pan to steam off any extra liquid. Once dry, drizzle olive oil over the calamari
Once the calamari starts to get some colour, add the garlic (chilli if using) and reduce the heat. Press the calamari against the pan slightly if necessary, to get some colour.
Add a little extra olive oil as needed. then sprinkle the parsley over the calamari. Once the parsley starts to get crispy remove from the heat.
Pour extra olive oil over the calamari, a little crushed sea salt and it’s ready to be served together with the lemon.
Serve with fresh crusty bread like many Spanish Tapas
For BBQ: Pat the squid dry and brush with a little oil, then grill for 2 minutes each side over high heat. Prepare the garlic and parsley oil in a small pan or keep it uncooked, brush it over the squid while cooking, or drizzle over the top once it is cooked.
What is Calamari? The word calamari comes from the Italian word for squid, ‘calamaro,’ but calamari generally refers to all squid dishes although squid and calamari differ in size and shape calamari is considered more tender and therefore more expensive than squid
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