– Fried Calamari with Homemade Garlic Aioli –
Nothing beats a plate of freshly made Fried Calamari with Homemade Garlic Aioli, it´s one of the greatest appetizers you can enjoy. The sad part is that most people only eat fried calamari when they go to a restaurant, and that can get quite expensive. Making fried calamari at home is much cheaper, it taste way better and it´s super easy to make. In this recipe I use frozen tubes of squid that are already cleaned, these are very easy to find here in Spain, as well as France, Italy, etc. In other countries you can find these tubes of squid in you local Asian markets, they almost always carry them, as well as Amazon, they actually carry them now in their grocery section!
The Secret to Perfectly Fried Calamari & Homemade Garlic Aioli
Many people are intimidated to work with squid, as it has its fame on having a rubbery texture if over-cooked. The secret to perfectly cooked squid is simple…don´t over cook it! To achieve perfect fried calamari you have to use the right oil, the right heat, and cook them for an exact amount of time. Same goes with making homemade aioli, which essentially is mayonnaise. To make it perfect everytime, it´s about patience and using the right ingredients. In the video and recipe card below I will show you all the tricks to achieve perfection everytime. Watch the video below on how to make these Fried Calamari with Homemade Garlic Aioli or check out the recipe card below, which you can print 🙂 .
Watch the Video Below on How to Make Fried Calamari with Homemade Garlic Aioli
Fried Calamari with Homemade Garlic Aioli
Ingredients
- -2 tubes of squid 1 1/2 pounds each
- -1/2 cup all purpose flour
- -1/2 tsp sea salt
- -1 tsp dried parsley
- -1 tsp dried thyme
- -1/2 cup sunflower oil
- -2 cloves of garlic
- -1 egg yolk
- -1/2 tsp lemon juice
- -1/4 cup extra virgin Spanish olive oil
- fresh parsley
Instructions
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To make the garlic aioli, finely mince 2 cloves of garlic and add them to a mortar, using a pestle pound down on the garlic until your form a paste, then add 1 egg yolk, 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice and a pinch of sea salt, start SLOWLY pouring in about a 1/4 cup of extra virgin Spanish olive oil while you mix everything together (without stopping), once you reach a mayonnaise like consistency, the garlic aioli is done, cover with seran wrap and add to the fridge
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To make the batter for the calamari, add a generous 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour to a bowl, 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt, 1 teaspoon of dried parsley and 1 teaspoon of dried thyme, mix all the dry ingredients together and set aside
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Grab 2 frozen tubes of squid that are about 1 1/2 pounds each (or whatever is equivalent), remove them from the plastic wrap, rinse them under cold water, pat each one dry with paper towels and cut into rings that are about a 1/4 inch thick
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To coat the squid rings, add the flour mixture and the squid rings into a plastic bag and mix everything together until all the squid rings are well coated
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Heat a small non-stick frying pan with a medium-high heat and add 1/2 cup of sunflower oil, once the oil get´s hot start adding the squid rings to the pan, cook in batches to not over-crowd the pan, cook each ring for about 3 minutes per side and then transfer to a plate with paper towels
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Transfer the garlic aioli to a small bowl, place it on a plate and decorate the fried calamari on the plate, garnish with fresh parsley
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Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
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Alejandro
Where’s the recipe card?
06 . Sep . 2021Spain on a Fork
Recipe card is back up, there was a glitch 🙂 much love
06 . Sep . 2021Celina
Sounds and looks delicious can’t wait to make it. Can you use EVOO instead of Sunflower oil?
13 . Jul . 2021Spain on a Fork
EVOO is too heavy to fry calamari, though you can use it. I would recommend just virgin olive oil over EVOO 🙂 much love
13 . Jul . 202115 Easy Spanish Appetizers
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08 . Apr . 2021Karen
Absolutely one of my favorite things to eat with a glass of Prosecco!
24 . Mar . 2021Spain on a Fork
Sounds great! much love 🙂
25 . Mar . 2021