Stuffed Squid
Stuffing calamari is a great way to use up old hobz (bread). Looking at the ingredients list, this dish really is a marriage of typical Maltese produce. While gently simmering in the tomato sauce, the stuffing absorbs the flavour of the sea, pairing it with other ingredients in the filling. Mix and edit the stuffing ingredients of anchovies, olive and capers as you like using the base of bread and eggs to bind it.
Ingredients 15
Sauce
2 ripe tomatoes, large, grated
1 onion, small, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
200 ml white wine
salt and pepper
Stuffed Squid
2 squid, large, weighing about 550 g (1 lb 3 oz) each
3 eggs, 2 hard-boiled, peeled and chopped; 1 raw
1 cup bread, loosely packed, torn into pieces, without crusts, from a continental-style loaf
60 g kalamata olives, chopped
1 tbsp capers, rinsed and chopped
2 anchovy fillets, finely chopped
1 lemon zest, zest, small, grated
2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley (italian parsley), chopped
100 ml milk, if required
salt and pepper
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Method 8
Score the on their bases and grate them using a box grater.
In a large saucepan over a medium heat, fry the finely diced and chopped in the for 5 minutes until soft. Add the and reduce it for 3 minutes, then stir in the grated and some salt and pepper, and turn off the heat.
To clean a , gently pull the tentacles away from the body; the intestines should come at the same time. Cut beneath the eyes to remove the intestines from the tentacles, then push out the beak in the centre of the tentacles. Pull out the transparent quill from inside the body. Slice the wings off the body. Peel the skin from the body and wings. Rinse the tentacles, wings and tube inside and out. Dice the tentacles and wings and reserve them to include in the stuffing.
Crack the raw into a large bowl and whisk. Mix in the diced squid tentacles and wings, torn , chopped hard-boiled eggs, chopped , chopped , finely chopped , grated , chopped , and salt and pepper. Add as needed to moisten the mixture. See tip below for adding the milk.
Stuff into the squid tubes, making sure the filling is not too loose but also not too compact, as it will expand and can split the tubes during cooking.
Reheat the pan of sauce. Scrape the sauce to the sides so that when you add the , it touches the pan. Lightly brown the stuffed squid tubes on two sides. Return the sauce around the squid and mix in 100 ml (3 1⁄2 fl oz) of water. Cover with a lid and simmer over a very low heat for 40 minutes, adding more splashes of water if the sauce dries out.
Slice each stuffed squid tube on an angle into 4–5 pieces each. Serve the slices with the sauce, together with crusty bread and a salad or side dish.
Simon Bajada's tips
Milk can be added after combining bread with the other ingredients. If the bread doesn’t moisten enough with oil and vinegar from the capers, some teaspoons of milk will help soften the mixture.
