25 mins
Not Too Tricky
serves 4
About the recipe
A gem of a dish featuring chargrilled squid and creamy cannellini beans for something simple, yet very delicious. Not only does it look and taste impressive, it takes no time at all to rustle up. Double win!
Ingredients
2 fresh red chillies
½ a bunch of flat-leaf parsley (15g)
2 lemons
extra virgin olive oil
8 squid, cleaned, gutted, from sustainable sources
olive oil
2 cloves of garlic
2 x 400g tins of cannellini beans
red wine vinegar
200g rocket
Top Tip
HANDY HINT
Pat the squid dry with kitchen paper, then use a regular eating knife to lightly score the inside at ½cm intervals, at an angle. Turn the squid through 90° and do the same again to create a criss-cross pattern.
FLAVOUR BOOST
To make this recipe really sing on the flavour front, try using jarred beans – they're a little bit more expensive, but will make this dish extra special.
Method
- To make the salsa, finely chop 2 fresh red chillies, pick and roughly chop ½ a bunch of flat-leaf parsley (15g). Scrape it all into a bowl, then finely zest over 2 lemons and squeeze in all the juice. Add 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and mix together well. Season to taste.
- Run a sharp knife down the length of 8 squid tubes and open each one out like a book. Lightly score the insides in a criss-cross fashion at ½cm intervals.
- Place a large pan on a medium heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Peel and finely slice 2 cloves of garlic, then add to the pan and cook for 2 minutes or until golden.
- Tip in 2 x 400g tin of cannellini beans (juice and all) and simmer for 5 minutes, or until thickened and creamy.
- Add 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar and season to taste with sea salt and black pepper. Mash some of the beans until you have a creamy texture and leave to simmer gently, stirring occasionally.
- Preheat a griddle pan until screaming hot, then add the squid and cook for 1 to 2 minutes on each side, or until lightly charred and starting to curl. Dunk the hot squid in the salsa, turning and coating in all that flavour.
- Tip the beans onto a serving platter then top with the squid and spoon over the remaining dressing and scatter over 200g of rocket.
- Delicious served with some slices of griddle bread rubbed with a little garlic and a drizzle of olive oil for mopping up the juices.
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