STORY BEHIND THE RECIPE
My husband was based in Barcelona for a number of years, and when we visited him, our family fell in love with Spanish food, especially tapas. This Warm Squid and Potato Salad recipe (guest post by my eldest daughter!) is a Basque-inspired recipe with Spanish and French influences.
Our love affair with Spanish food was re-ignited after my eldest daughter prepared a ‘Spanish Fiesta’ themed feast for the family, inspired by her holiday to the French Basque country – a melting pot of French and Spanish influences featuring the coastal region’s specialty: seafood aplenty!
TRICK OF THE TRADE
You will be amazed at how well squid and potatoes go together. This beautiful combination of juicy succulent squid cooked to perfection and nicely-browned fluffy potatoes bursting with flavours of the French Basque Country will surely whet your appetite and delight all your senses.
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The trick in making this warm squid and potato salad dish a stunning success takes just a small dose of determination!
- First, learn how to clean the squid (see my tutorial here).
- Secondly, restrain yourself from flipping the potatoes too often (they won’t be nicely browned underneath if you keep flipping them)!
WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS DISH
- The surprising combo of squid and potatoes! The different textures go really well together, something not commonly done in Chinese cuisine.
- It’s relatively easy to make! The hardest part would be to clean the squid, which you can learn how to here.
HOW TO MAKE SQUID AND POTATO SALAD?
Wash and peel the potatoes. Cut into quarters. Wash and peel the onion and and cut into strips.
Slice the chorizo diagonally to elongate the surface of each slice.
Wash and clean the squid.
In a medium pot, boil the potatoes until fork tender, then drain.
COOKING TIPS
- Spread the potatoes in a single layer and don’t turn them until the edges start to brown to get nicely browned potatoes.
- Cover the pot after draining the potatoes and shake it vigorously to create a “crumbly” potato surface. This makes the potatoes extra fluffy and increases the surface area of crisp potato.
- Use a heavy pan that’s well heated through to get browned squid without overcooking.
- Add in the squid IMMEDIATELY into the sizzling butter, otherwise the butter will get burnt.
DIETARY MODIFICATIONS
- Egg-Free: No modifications needed.
- Fish-Free: No modifications needed.
- Gluten-Free: No modifications needed.
- Nut-free: No modifications needed.
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Warm Squid and Potato Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 potatoes
- 1 chorizo
- 1 onion
- 3 squid
- 50 ml white wine
- 3 TBsp oil
- 1.5 TBsp butter
- dill optional
- rocket leaves optional
- a dash lemon juice optional
Instructions
PREPARATION METHOD
- Wash and peel the potatoes. Cut into quarters.
- Wash, peel and chop the onion into strips.
- Slice the chorizo diagonally to elongate the surface of each slice.
- Wash the squid and remove the spine, mouth, eye, dirt sac and ink sac. You may choose to peel off the skin or leave it on depending on your preference. (See my video demonstrating the easiest and quickest way to clean squid!)
COOKING METHOD
- In a medium pot, boil the potatoes until fork tender, then drain.
- In a non-stick pan, add 3 TBsp of oil over medium heat. Add the potatoes in a single layer. Remove when browned.
- Starting with a clean pan over medium heat, add 2 TBsp of oil and the sliced onions. When the onions start to caramelise, add in the chorizo and fry for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove the onions and chorizo from the pan.
- Immediately add in 1 TBsp butter into the pan at medium heat. It should start to sizzle. Immediately add in 3-4 squid bodies, and fry for about 3-4 minutes on each side. The squid should be nicely browned on both sides while the inside is still slightly moist and translucent (3/4 cooked).
- Add more butter, and repeat with the remaining squid bodies, reserving the tentacles for the final batch (they crisp extra nicely!)
- Use a pair of scissors to cut the squid bodies into 2 inch pieces
- Add a dash of white wine to deglaze the pan used to fry the squid.
- Then add back the onions, chorizo, potatoes and squid and mix well to soak up the glaze, or until the squid is fully cooked (2-4 minutes).
- Transfer the contents to a serving plate and garnish with dill.
- Optional: mix in rocket leaves and dress with a dash of lemon juice.
Notes
COOKING TIPS
- Spread the potatoes in a single layer and don’t turn them until the edges start to brown to get nicely browned potatoes.
- Cover the pot after draining the potatoes and shake it vigorously to create a “crumbly” potato surface. This makes the potatoes extra fluffy and increases the surface area of crisp potato.
- Use a heavy pan that’s well heated through to get browned squid without overcooking.
- Add in the squid IMMEDIATELY into the sizzling butter, otherwise the butter will get burnt.