Saturday, January 1, 2011

Calamari mac and cheese


Unknown territory here, but a highly successful result.

I refer you to my post last week for the macaroni part of this recipe. Still using orecchiette (little ears). The difference here is that I was inspired to try this in order to make something for those folks who may have a shellfish allergy. I can see this made with cod or salmon or perhaps even tuna. But for now it’s calamari.

I went back and forth about whether I was going to deep fry the squid. In the end I decided I didn’t want to waste a lot of cooking oil. So I went with a shallow fry. Here’s how easy it was.

Calamari macaroni and cheese (2 servings)
8 oz. calamari, thawed if frozen

Prepare the macaroni and sauce as per my blog for lobster mac and cheese (December 25, 2010).

Rinse the squid well and dry well with paper towels. Leave the tentacles whole or, if they are large, cut them in half. Cut the squid into ½” pieces. Dredge it all with cornstarch, shaking off the excess.

Heat 1” of vegetable oil in a large skillet. Fry the calamari for about 3 minutes (less time for the tentacles), tossing a few times with a spider. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with fine sea salt.

Serve up the macaroni and cheese and top with the crispy calamari.

6 comments:

Mary Bergfeld said...

I love your spirit of adventure, Stephen. I hope you've had a wonderful holiday and that the new year brings you a full measure of good things, especially continued health and happiness. Blessings...Mary

Bo said...

I can always count on something very creative from you. Happy New Years!

Pam said...

How creative as usual. It looks delicious! Happy New Year!

Unknown said...

Oh yum!! Great, now i'm going to have to make a half and half pan..one with lobster and one with calamari!!!
Happy New Year my friend! Can't wait to see what you'll create in 2011!!

Create. Snap. Eat. said...

The most amazing calamari I have ever had was at Janos downtown -- very lightly battered and gently fried. This post reminds me of that amazing dish.

Chris said...

Calamari mac and cheese, now that is adventurous!

I'm like you, I hate frying because I feel like I'm wasting so much oil.

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