I love seafood, especially stuffed squid. I was born in England but have lived in various places including the Canary Islands and Spain, which is how I picked up many tips about cooking stuffed squid and other seafood and how I developed my love of squid, octopus and every delightful treat from the sea!
Like many people, I was nervous about cooking squid because I was worried about it turning rubbery, but with the right recipe and the correct cooking time/temperature that is not a concern, and if my squid is not tender then I know it just needs more time. Yes, being a fan of stuffed squid means knowing how to cook it properly.
When a sharp knife slips through, as easily as a butter knife melting through soft butter, the squid is perfectly cooked and ready to serve. You can either cook it in a minute or two over a very hot heat or give it a longer time (40 minutes or so) in a braising liquid to slow cook it. The problems happen when you go for something in the middle of those extremes and your squid toughens!
Stuffed Squid: Lots of Possibilities
Squid is a versatile ingredient and you can stuff it Asian-style or Mediterranean-style, experiment with different fillings based on rice, seafood or even ground meat, and you can choose from baby squid, medium squid or even the big ones, depending what kind of dish you are making, and whether you are preparing a soup, using a sauce, frying, baking or grilling the seafood, or how many people you anticipate feeding.
Cooking Squid is Fun
I love to eat (don’t we all!) and I really love to cook. Calamari though is a favorite. Although I often find recipes and follow them, I also love to get creative in the kitchen. That might mean adapting someone else’s recipe or it might mean inventing my own dishes. I believe I have a good feeling for what works and what does not and I like to use my imagination to come up with all kinds of exciting dishes, much to the delight of my husband (another confirmed foodie and seafood fan in particular).
I hope you find what you are looking for here, whether you are curious about what to do with squid, intrigued about the different types of recipes, wishing to learn how to buy and prepare this type of seafood, or you simply found yourself here and are now curious about all the possibilities there are for you to choose from.
Recommended Stuffed Squid Recipes
Classic Stuffed Squid in Tomato Sauce