Crispy Squid With Beetroot Sauce
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.
Writer and journalist Rebecca Seal travels where the food is excellent, and she sticks around long enough to tell the story right. A follow-up to her previous cookbook on the cuisine of Istanbul (written with her photographer husband, Steven Joyce), The Islands of Greece takes you on a boat to a great meal. These pies are packed with healthy greens and bright flavors.
Rather than the usual calamari with garlic mayonnaise, this combines earthy beetroot with saffron and lemon in a bright pink sauce.
Crispy Squid With Beetroot Sauce
Prep Time
30
minutes
Cook Time
1.08
hours
Servings
4
as a meze
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 ounces raw red beets
- Pinch of saffron threads
- 1 tablespoon Greek yogurt
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 1/2 ounces squid bodies and tentacles
- Generous 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- vegetable oil
- lemon wedges
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Wrap the beetroots in foil and place in the oven for 1 hour, or until tender to the point of a knife. Remove from the foil and allow to cool. When cool enough to touch, rub off the skins with your thumbs.
- Place the saffron in a cup and add 5 tablespoons of hot water. Leave to steep for 10 minutes. Strain, reserving the liquid, and blend it with the cooked beets and yogurt, using a food processor or hand-held blender. Taste the sauce and add a little salt and lemon juice, to taste.
- Meanwhile, slice the squid into rings and the tentacles into manageable pieces. Mix the flour, baking powder and some salt and pepper together and place it all in a sandwich bag. Add the squid to the bag and – holding the opening shut – give it a good shake. Let the squid sit in the flour for a couple of minutes.
- Remove the squid from the bag, shaking off excess flour. Heat 1¼ inches of vegetable oil in a large saucepan to 350°F on a pan thermometer, or until a cube of bread browns in the oil in 30 seconds.
- Carefully drop the squid into the oil and fry quickly until golden brown, after just 30 seconds or so (otherwise it will be chewy). Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Serve the squid straightaway, with wedges of lemon to squeeze over and the beetroot sauce.