I love squid but I hate cooking squid. There is just too much work when it comes to squid—peeling off the membrane, removing the ink, and so forth.
I had so many “accidents” when the squid ink squirted all over my clothes and face, and it really wasn’t pleasant, and I would smell like a squid no matter how hard I cleaned off the stain.
So, as much as I love squid, I hardly make it at home, unless I really have a serious craving for it.
After the confinement, I have been on a binge of eating seafood, so I bought some squid, took the time to clean them (no accident this time!) and made three-cup squid, or 三杯小卷, a popular Taiwanese recipe that I love. (Check out my three-cup chicken recipe.)
The three-cup squid was fabulous, and I think I really should be making more squid dishes at home. ;)
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Three-Cup Squid (三杯小卷)
Three-Cup Squid - squid, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, rice wine, chili.
Ingredients
- 12 oz cleaned squid cut into pieces
- 6 slices peeled ginger
- 6 cloves garlic skin peeled
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or Chinese rice wine
- 1 1/2 tablespoon dark sweet soy sauce Kecap Manis
- A big bunch of Thai basil leaves
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch + 1 teaspoon water
- 1 red chili deseeded and sliced
Instructions
-
Clean the squid thoroughly, cut into pieces, rinse with cold water. Heat up a pot of water and bring it to boil. Blanch the squid for about 20 seconds. Drain and set aside.
-
Heat up a claypot on high heat and add the sesame oil. Add garlic and ginger and stir-fry until aromatic. Add in squid and do a few quick stirs. Add soy sauce, sweet soy sauce, and Shaoxing wine. Stir the squid to coat well with the sauce. Add basil leaves, stir, dish out and serve immediately.
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Little Inbox
Believe it or not, my mum saved the squid ink for my Chinese calligraphy when I was in Primary school. Oh, it smelled yucky! My funny childhood. :)
Back to the squid cooking, I just realized I have not cooked any squid dish before. Just help my mum to clean it. Squid dish can be photogenic, just like yours.
Rasa Malaysia
That’s too funny. I can’t stand the smell. I had to eat squid ink paella when I was in Madrid, Spain. Didn’t like it at all!!!
The Little Teochew
Good to see you back! :) Hope all’s been good, Bee. Three Cup Squid sounds (and looks) really good. I like the chinese name even more! They do look like 小卷.
Rasa Malaysia
Ju, that’s what the Taiwanese call them, 小卷, strange, right?
My Little Expat Kitchen
I love squid and I cook it often. I would love to try this recipe as well, it looks fantastic.
Magda
Rasa Malaysia
Yes, you will like this 3-cup squid recipe.
RAJA AINI
DELICOUS
Rasa Malaysia
OMG, I hope you got paid a lot to do that. ;)
Chubbypandq
Wow. I’ve never had the squid version on this dish. I usually only see it with chicken.
Rasa Malaysia
CP – yes, you can get this at Yu’s Garden in Irvine but the whole squid.
Su-yin
This looks great! Have heard of ‘San bei ji’ but never heard of a squid version. Will try it out soon.
p.s Hope all is good with you! x
Rasa Malaysia
Yes, there is a squid version, very popular in Taiwan. I remember watching a Taiwanese TV drama and learn about the dish – 三杯小卷.
[email protected]
After seeing your tweet yesterday, I bought squid and basil – ready to cook this – hope it will turn out as good as yours :)
Rasa Malaysia
Shirley – let me know how three-cup squid turns out.
Hugo
I have access to cheap, fresh, peeled and cleaned squid.
No clay pot though, is there a second best cooking method?
Rasa Malaysia
Just use your work or stir-fry pan.
Perverted Old Glutton Goat Pete
Tips:
Half fill a basin or the kitchen sink with water and clean squid immersed in it. Wash cleaned squid in clean water and set aside and repeat until all squid are clean and washed. No more ink squirts on you. This method also works for peeling onions and shallots. Cry no more.
Try this easy fried squid recipe: Coat pieces of squid with egg white, coat with corn flour or “Kentucky” flour and add squid in to deep fry them in hot oil. CAUTION: COVER WITH LID IMMEDIATELY AFTER ADDING SQUID IN HOT OIL. You will hear explosions going on. If you are frying without a lid be prepared to have a splattered and very oily kitchen floor and walls and pieces of squid on the floor too.
Love spicy squid especially in curries.
Eleanor Hoh (Wok Star)
I love eating squid too but it’s so tricky to overcook and they become chewy like elastic band! I like them either crunchy or soft but not chewy. Many Asian restos I’ve eaten at do not make this well in Miami, always disappointed but I keep hoping for a good one. I heard you either cook very little or for a long time. Is that true?
Rasa Malaysia
No, just don’t overcook them. If you cook too long, they shrink as all the water comes out. Blanch it so they are half cooked and finish cooking during the stir-fry or in this case, in a clay pot.
Denise Michaels - Adventurous Foodie
There are some wonderful dishes that are worth the extra effort once in awhile to get a great result. This definitely looks like one of them.
dogbite
I love squid. And to see them in a sand pot is to think of long cooking time but here it is short and quick. Kind of a bit of culinary trickery.
san
I agree with the others..never thought of making squid this way….definitely going into the to-do list. Thanks!
Ingrid
This looks really good! I love squid!
naddy
Hi, can I substitute the chinese rice wine to something that is non alcoholic? What is your suggestion?
Eva Thorne
Love the recipe. I just made Malaysian spicy squid from The New Malaysian Cookbook. Unbelievable!!!! http://inthekitchenwitheva-eva.blogspot.com/2011/04/malaysian-spicy-squid.html
M Chung
What do you do with corn starch and water?
tamara
I love 3-cup chicken, was so excited to see 3-cup squid! I had a bag of squid tubes in my freezer that begged, “Cook me!” This is a simple recipe but so tasty and flavorful! It was easy to cook and looked attractive too. A winner!
Vicky
Made this over the weekend and loved it! It was my first time cooking with squid and it was so easy I don’t know why I waited so long to try it!
zafer çetinöz
After seeing your tweet yesterday, I bought squid and basil – ready to cook this – hope it will turn out as good as yours
Ipohgirl
Just discovered this website and love it.
What is the reason for blanching the squid first?
Rasa Malaysia
To lose the extra moisture content in the squid.