This month’s recipe is from my cookery book; Modern Mediterranean: Sun-drenched recipes from Mallorca & beyond.
In the book, I’ve tried to take you take you on a tour of the bountiful produce of the Mediterranean and show you how to harness its flavours in new and exciting ways. In recent years these remarkable ingredients have been utilised by the region’s best chefs to create a cuisine that builds on the history and traditions entrenched in the areas food and reinterpreting them into something new. The book is organised into 18 chapters by key ingredient; covering everything from tomatoes, garlic, almonds and olive oil to octopus, chorizo, saffron and truffles, the book is a love letter to the Mediterranean and its food. The recipes include new twists on classic dishes, such as Yellow Gazpacho with Smoked Salmon and Avocado or Saffron, Raspberry and Orange Blossom Crème Catalan, as well as less familiar fare, including Herb-roasted Guinea fowl with Couscous Salad and Sobrasada and Honey Croquettes with Almond Aioli. I’ve also included many traditional recipes from Mallorca such as Arroz brut, Escaldums, and frito Mallorquin.
One of my favourite ingredients is fresh squid. Every time I pick up a squid I can’t help thinking that something so ugly couldn’t possibly taste so good. But looks can often be deceiving and these creepy-looking cephalopods are utterly delicious when cooked in the right way. I think some people are put off buying fresh squid because they think they are difficult to prepare but preparing fresh squid or cuttlefish is really a simple process and, once you’ve done it a couple of times, it becomes child play. Pull the head and tentacles away from the body, then skin the body and pull out the plastic-looking backbone cartilage. Cut the tentacles from the head just above the eye, then wash both the body and tentacles thoroughly in cold running water.
For me, nothing beats super-fresh whole squid grilled over a fierce flame and sprinkled with garlic, parsley, olive oil and sea salt. The tentacle adventure needn’t be all that scary – just remember that there is one basic rule when cooking with any type of cephalopod: they either need to be cooked quickly for a very short time, or slowly for a very long time; anything in between and you end up with something rather tough and unpleasant.
When visiting the local fish market here in Mallorca, you should look out for Calamar de Potera, which means the squid are line-caught and therefore of a much higher quality. Obviously they are a little more expensive, but they are well worth it. Hand fishing with hook and line is painstaking and requires much patience, but the quality of the squid is substantially better than that of net-caught squid. A net-caught squid will have been bashed and crushed and will have sand inside its skin and body. You have to wash net-caught squid thoroughly and completely remove the skin, which takes away both flavour and colour.
Grilled Squid with Chickpea & Piquillo pepper salad
“Tap de corti” & preserved lemons
I’m using a local paprika from Mallorca called tap de corti but you can substitute this with any type of sweet or slightly smoked paprika for this recipe. Chickpeas, piquillo peppers and preserved lemons are a great combination and work so well with the fresh squid, mint and chillies. This simple recipe is delicious and a real crowd pleaser!
Ingredients: Serves 4
4 medium-sized whole squid, cleaned
1 red chilli, finely chopped
8 mint leaves, chopped
SALAD
10 Piquillo Peppers from the jar, sliced
200g cooked chickpeas
2tbsp chopped mint
2tbsp capers, rinsed
1tsp preserved lemon, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
4tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Juice of one lemon
A good pinch of “Tap de corti” (paprika from Mallorca)
Sea salt to taste
Mix the Piquillo peppers in a large bowl together with the chickpeas, mint and the capers. Add the rest of the ingredients and serve immediately, or refrigerate for a few hours to get all the flavours to mingle. With a sharp knife, slice the squids as if you were going to chop them into rings to score the surface. Take care to not cut all the way through.
Heat your grill plate or frying pan until very hot. Season the squids and place them in the hot pan with a drizzle of olive oil. After 30 seconds the squids should be slightly caramelised. Turn them over and add another drizzle of olive oil, chopped chillies and the mint leaves. Cook for 1 minute and remove them from the pan. Serve with the chickpea & piquillo pepper salad.
Marc Fosh – Michelin Star Chef
