Baby Squid Cooked in a Summertime Sauce

Our baby squid have been carefully prepared for you by removing the ink sac - now for the fun part! In this super easy summer recipe, we gentle score the squid to create the traditional ‘curled' effect. Then drenched in a vibrant mix of tomatoes, chilli, garlic, and basil, creating a gorgeous sauce that’s full of our favourite summertime flavours. Quickly seared for a tender texture, the squid soaks up the light, fresh, and seasonal flavours of the summery sauce, whilst allowing the squid to shine through.

• Prep: 20 to 30 mins (this includes marinating!)
• Cooking: 20 mins
• Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

• 1 x 700g Bag of Caught & Delivered Raw Baby Squid, defrosted overnight in the fridge [Link this to the product listing in ‘Shell Fish & Seafood’]
• 400g baby plum tomatoes, cut in half
• 2 large garlic cloves, sliced
• 1 small red chilli, finely sliced
• Small bunch of basil leaves, roughly chopped
• 100ml extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 small bunch of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• To serve: Sourdough, sliced and toasted

Method:

1. Start by preparing the squid, do this by pushing out the tentacles that are tucked inside of the squid. Cut off the very top part of the tentacles that may be a little hard, and discard. Cut the tentacles from the squid and set aside. Then take each squid and slice or cut with scissors down one side so that you can flatten it out. Scrape the inside of the squid gently with a knife.
2. Whilst flattened, score the squid in a crosshatching pattern, making sure not to cut all of the way through. Rinse in cold water and pat dry. Pop the squid and tentacles in a bowl in the fridge while preparing the sauce.
3. Combine the chopped tomatoes, garlic, chilli, lemon juice, basil and parsley into the bowl with the olive oil, salt and pepper and mix well. Next, pour this over the squid and leave to marinade 30 minutes or so in the fridge.
4. Then, remove the squid and set aside in a bowl while you cook the sauce. Do this by tipping into a saucepan and bring the sauce slowly to a simmer. Gently cook until all of the ingredients soften and release their juices and flavours.
5. You can cook the squid on a hot skillet over a barbecue, or in a frying pan - they take no time at all, and will quickly curl up as they cook!
6. Once opaque, approximately after 2 to 3 minutes, combine the squid and the prepared sauce.
7. Serve on toasted sourdough to soak up the delicious sauce!