Fried Calamari

4.80 (25)
⏱ 20 mins 🍽 Serves 6 🌶 italian 🏷 Starters

This classic Italian starter features squid rings and tentacles coated in a seasoned flour mixture and fried until crisp. It is served with lemon wedges and a rich, slow-cooked tomato sauce. The recipe includes instructions for making the simple tomato sauce from scratch, which simmers for one hour to develop deep flavour. The dish is perfect for sharing and can be prepared quickly.

Fried Calamari

Ingredients

  • For the Calamari
  • Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
  • 500g clean squid with tentacles, bodies cut into 1 to 1 1/2-cm thick rings
  • 450g plain flour
  • 2 tbsp dried parsley
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 lemons, cut into wedges
  • 225ml simple tomato sauce, recipe follows or jarred tomato sauce, warmed
  • For the Simple Tomato Sauce
  • 110ml extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 stalk celery, chopped
  • 1 carrot, chopped
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 4 (450g) tins chopped tomatoes
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 60g unsalted butter, optional

Method

  1. Pour vegetable oil into a heavy large saucepan to a depth of 7.5-cm. Heat the oil to 175°C.
  2. Combine the plain flour, dried parsley, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Toss the squid rings and tentacles in the flour mixture in small batches to coat them evenly.
  3. Carefully add the coated squid to the hot oil. Fry each batch until crisp and a very pale golden colour, which should take about one minute.
  4. Use tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer the fried calamari to a plate lined with paper towels to drain any excess oil.
  5. Arrange the drained calamari and lemon wedges on a clean serving plate. Sprinkle with a little extra salt.
  6. Serve the fried calamari immediately with the warmed simple tomato sauce on the side.
  7. To make the simple tomato sauce, heat the extra-virgin olive oil in a large casserole pot. Add the chopped onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes.
  8. Add the chopped celery and carrot to the pot, seasoning with sea salt and black pepper. Saute until all the vegetables have softened, about 5 to 10 minutes more.
  9. Stir in the tinned chopped tomatoes and dried bay leaves. Let the sauce simmer uncovered on low heat for one hour or until it becomes thick.
  10. Remove the bay leaves from the sauce and check the seasoning. If the sauce tastes acidic, you can add unsalted butter one tablespoon at a time to balance the flavours.
  11. Process half of the tomato sauce in a food processor until smooth. Repeat with the remaining sauce.
  12. If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely before freezing it in 250ml to 500ml portions. It can be frozen for up to 6 months.

Nutrition (per serving)

Nutrition data not available.

Recipe details

CategoryStarters
Cuisineitalian
AuthorFood Network UK