Ingredients
4 Squid tubes (or 2 whole Squid)
130gm cornflour
130gm rice flour
½ tsp chilli powder
1 tsp Szechuan pepper (finely ground)
1 tsp flaky salt
200ml milk
Oil for frying
Chef's Notes:
Szechuan pepper can be found in Asian Food stores & in some supermarkets.
For Optional Garnish
1 lemon – cut into 12 wedges
16-20 coriander leaves
30 pieces fried shallots (found in most Asian stores)
1 fresh chilli, finely sliced
16-20 each Enoki/Needle mushrooms
Cooking instructions
To prepare the squid tubes cut the tube in half lengthwise and remove cartilage/cuttle bone (thin clear shard that runs the length of the tube), score the squid without completely cutting through – score the full length of the squid with lines approximately 5mm apart on a 45 degree angle.
If using whole squid cut the tentacles and scrub to remove any of the hard sucker rings, remove the beak from the tube and cut the triangle tail from the tube - only use the cleaned tentacles and cleaned tube (as above preparation)
Cut the tubes and tentacles into bite sized pieces.
Mix all dry ingredients well.
Place the squid into the milk (this ensures the dry ingredients sticks to the squid).
Heat the oil to 185°c in a deep fryer.
Remove the squid from the milk and shake any excess milk, then dredge the squid through the dry ingredients (seasoning).
Fry small amounts of squid till the coating is crisp. Remove and drain on a paper towel.
Portion the squid and garnishes between four plates and serve hot.
Recipe courtesy: Deepwater Group
