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Fried Calamari

woodsman

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Fried calamari/squid is hands down my favorite appetizers. I make mine sort of asian style with lots of sea salt and cracked pepper. A great dipping sauce is a must, I use a copied sauce recipe from the Italian chain restaurant Carrabba’s ( Ricardo sauce)

If I’m feeling really adventurous I will also fry up some oysters, another fav.

https://www.quora.com/How-do-you-make-the-pepper-sauce-for-Carrabbas-calamari
 
Ive always had a problem trying to get the breading to stick to the calamari when I fry it so I gave up. Nowadays I just order it when Im in restaurants.

If I get takeout, then Thai sweet chili sauce works as a dip.
 
PoS said:
Ive always had a problem trying to get the breading to stick to the calamari when I fry it so I gave up. Nowadays I just order it when Im in restaurants.

If I get takeout, then Thai sweet chili sauce works as a dip.
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Tip: make sure the squid is dry, use a zip-lock bag to coat them (shake to coat) Run the cooking oil on the hot side.

After flouring, refrigerate for a time, it will bond the flour to the squid so it doesn’t fall off then fry in small batches.
 
WCH said:
Carrabbas' does make some good Calamari.
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Ages ago, I ordered fried calamari as an appetizer at a Tomales Bay, CA restaurant. I had no idea my wife did not know what calamari was. She was enjoying the heck out it until she found a tentacle. She looked at me wide eyed and said "there's tentacles in there". I said "I know, they're the best part of the squid". She said, "squid is bait"! Then she proceeded to eat some more.
 

I believe the Calimari at Carrabbas is pan-fried. [not deep]
 

Until Carrabbas, I'd never tried it. Of course this was the same year I got into sashimi.
 

I like them fried with an olive oil, parsley and garlic simple sauce with lemon.
Cipriones or baby squid are my favorite. Flour lightly and deep fry till crunchy. White wine and eat with fingers and lemon.
 

I'm not allowed to eat it when I'm with my wife. The first time I ever had it with her, she saw the tentacle part and could only see "deep fried spider". Since then, it grosses her out so badly that she can't eat her meal, so I only have it when I'm having a meal out without her.
 
WCH said:
I believe the Calimari at Carrabbas is pan-fried. [not deep]
Click to expand...



Pan fried? I don’t think so. Calamari is one of the hardest seafood's to fry properly. Yes, you can do it in a deep pan if it’s filled with cooking oil but Carrabba’s just dunks there’s in a deep fryer.

I use a large wok for frying, anything smaller is sort of a waste of time with Calamari, they need lots of room so the coating doesn't come off.
 
Rather than a dip, drop a a table spoon or two of hot giardiniera (mild, if you must...) on it in a bowl and swirl it around, giving it a lite coat before plating. Trust me.
 

Just the impression I got.

https://chef-preneur.com/2016/01/21/fried-calamari-carrabbas-italian-grill-recipe/
 
Best way to have calamari is to catch it early in the morning, take it home,clean and slice it, soak it in kiwi fruit to soften it up, crumb it, with a bit of chilli powder in the flour, and with panko bread crumbs. Then deep fry for a minute or two.
 
I actually love Olive Garden's calamari. I could make a meal off of it. Always perfectly cooked, just a little crispy, and not at all chewy.
 
I still get it, I still love it, even though I know that food cost runs less than 15 cents on the dollar so I know that this dish is one of the big profit makers.
 
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