R E C I P E
THIS MONTH FREDDY BIRD COOKS UP A SEAFOOD PARTY, AND SQUID IS THE GUEST OF HONOUR… THE LESS YOU DO to squid the better; my favourite way to eat it is cooked briefly over charcoal and then served with a touch of harissa. If I am going to make more of a dish out of it, though, I’m still careful to fuss about with it as little as possible, and make sure the squid remains the star of the show. This is exactly what this dish is about...
SQUId WITh CARABINEROS aNd BOmBa RICE SERVES 4
INGREDIENTS 8 garlic cloves 2 egg yolks 1 lemon, juice only extra virgin olive oil 4 carabineros (jumbo-size prawns) 1 ltr (approx) good crab stock ½ fennel bulb ½ Spanish onion 300g bomba rice brandy Anis del Mono white wine 4 squid, cleaned and split open (you can get your fishmonger to do this for you) small handful parsley, very finely chopped METHOD 1 First make your alioli. Crush three of the garlic cloves in Maldon salt flakes until smooth. Whisk the egg yolks, lemon juice and the garlic together, and add the olive oil until you get a creamy consistency. 2 Next, take the heads from your carabineros and fry ’em in olive oil. Pour over the crab stock and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour the stock through a mouli, crushing the heads to extract as much of the intense flavour as possible. 3 To make the rice, finely dice the fennel, onion and remaining garlic cloves. Sweat them down in olive oil until just starting to colour. Add the rice and cook until a little toasted. Deglaze with a splash of Anis del Mono, brandy and white wine. Then add the crab and prawn stock and cook until just tender. Cover and rest. 4 To prepare the squid, score a criss cross pattern in the bodies, to a depth of half way. Heat a pan or skillet until screaming hot, then cook for a maximum of 30 seconds on each side. Do the same with the carabineros and the tentacles – those should take no more than about 90 seconds in total. 5 Stir a good spoonful of alioli and a good pinch of the chopped parsley through the rice. 6 Spoon the rice onto the plate (it should ooze like molten lava) and arrange the carabineros, squid and tentacles on top. Serve with a glass of Albariño!
LIDO, Oakfield Place, Clifton, Bristol BS8 2BJ; 0117 332 3970; lidobristol.com
10
CRUMBSMAG.COM