Although I am allergic to prawns and crabs (one reason why you may rarely see their recipes on the blog) I am thankfully not allergic to squid which I totally love. Infact, I tasted squid when I was doing my M.B.A and my bunch of friends and I visited this little restaurant somewhere between Mangalore and Konaje (I have forgotten the names of the places although it was my daily route shuttling between home and college). Since I was younger and bolder and didn’t care if I could die if I ate something out of my comfort zone I simply gorged on the squid. The Shireen of today may not have had the guts to do so because by now I have read up a lot more on food intolerance and how, depending on the severity it can be the cause of one’s sudden death.
Squid (Calamari) Butter Garlic
Prep time (doesn’t include time to clean the fish): 10-15 mins | Cook time: under 5 mins | Serves 2-3Ingredients:
- 200 – 250 grams of squid/calamari (approx 2 medium sized)
- 8 big cloves of garlic finely chopped (approx 2-3 tablespoons)
- 4-5 cubes of butter (the size of sugar cubes, approx 1 tsp per cube)
- 2-3 tablespoons of lime juice (Add 1 tsp of olives / caper brine – optional)
- freshly ground pepper (approx ½ teaspoon or to taste)
- 3 tablespoons of fresh coriander or parsley finely chopped
- 1 tbs of olive oil (not extra virgin)
- salt to taste
For garnishing:
- 1 tablespoon of spring onion greens finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon of chilli/paprika flakes
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan that is big enough to accommodate the squid without over crowding the pan. Set the heat on a high and when the oil is really hot (but not smoking!) add the squid and spread it evenly on the pan. Sprinkle salt to taste and let it fry for about a minute.
3. Next, add the garlic and crushed pepper and stir fry the squid for about a minute
4. Toss in the fresh coriander or parsley and the lime juice and stir for about half a minute
5. Now add half of the butter and salt only if required (only if you have used unsalted butter) and mix well till all the butter is melted.
6. Finally, reduce the heat and add the remaining butter. When it has melted, garnish with spring onions greens and chili flakes.
7. Remove from heat and serve hot with rice as an accompaniment to a meal or just as a party starter.Note:
1. Once the squid has been cleaned the preparation of this dish does not take long as squid ideally needs just a few minutes to cook. When over cooked it tends to turn chewy and rubbery.
Hello. Thanks for posting your recipe. I've been looking for a good butter garlic squid recipe and this one seems to be one of the better ones out there. I do have just one question, though. Why not fry the garlic in the butter first and then add the squid? It seems like that might be a more effective way of infusing the garlic flavour into the squid. Just curious. Also, who is Ruchik, then? 😀
But if we cook squides direct it becomes rubbery.How about steaming it first and then cooking for that softness of the squides
Squid turns rubbery only when overcooked. The thumb rule is to cook it for 2-3 minutes only. I have not tried the steaming method
Hi Ri, you can do it either ways, we found this method working well for us 🙂 Ruchik means 'delicious' in Konkani and hence the name 🙂
Hi shireen, I tried this recipe with prawns. It turned out really nice.
@ Vanita: So glad to hear that you enjoyed this dish with prawns 🙂 thanks for the feedback!
turned out just good! thanks for sharing the recipe! 🙂
@ Rachu Bops: Happy to hear that! Thanks for your feedback!
Thanks, I always wanted to learn this recipe. Thank you very much. And ik dt ur name is shireen and wt ruchik means!!!
@ Mitanshu: Thanks so much for your compliments 🙂 Ruchik means 'delicious' and Randhap means 'cooking/cookery' in Konkani
Hi Shireen, this is just perfect … Loved the flavors. Will be making this with prawns for sure. Cheers
Hi Shireen,
I tried it and it was awesome. Randhap khup Ruchi jhalay
Hi Goan,
Thanks so much for the feedback! So happy to hear that!