Salt and Pepper Squid on a Crunchy Thai Salad
The Chinese 5-spice is the key ingredient in this dish. Use a good one from an Asian store, it will be much more aromatic than its supermarket counterparts.
Serves: 4 - 6
INGREDIENTS
750g baby squid tubes
2 tablespoons sea salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground pepper
2 teaspoons Chinese 5-spice
3⁄4 cup rice flour
2 egg whites
2-3 cups canola oil for frying
Salad
A selection of any of the following salad ingredients:
baby spinach, spring onions, coriander, watercress, bean sprouts, basil, mint, rocket, cucumber, flat leaf parsley, celery, red capsicum, roasted unsalted peanuts or cashews, snow peas
Dressing
3 tablespoons peanut oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
4 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1⁄4 cup packed mint or coriander leaves or both
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 garlic clove, crushed
pinch of sugar
METHOD
Cut the squid in half and score the inside with the tip of a sharp knife. Grind the salt, pepper and 5-spice together in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle. Place the rice flour in a wide shallow dish and mix
through the salt mixture. In another bowl lightly beat the egg whites.
Heat the oil in a wok or a deep saucepan to medium-high.
Take a few pieces of squid at a time and dip them into the egg whites then into the salt/flour mixture. Drop carefully into the oil and cook for 30-40 seconds until golden and crisp. Using a slotted spoon
remove the squid and drain on paper towels. Keep warm in a low oven. Repeat until all the squid is cooked.
Salad: Place the dressing ingredients in a food processor and blend. Combine the salad ingredients in a bowl and dress lightly just before serving.
To finish: Pile the salad onto plates and top with the squid. Serve immediately. Serves 4-6
Bamboo steamers are available from Asian grocery stores nationwide.
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In Dream Escape, we journey from Japan and Morocco to Italy, India and beyond, sharing recipes inspired by travel, heritage and comfort. We celebrate the champions of the Outstanding Food Producer Awards, explore the stories and recipes of chefs shaped by their cultural roots, and warm up with everything from West African soups and slow-braised lamb to porchetta, butter chicken and beef noodle soup. Alongside destination menus, Scandinavian sweets and cosy pub classics, Chrisanne Terblanche shares her favourite street-side dining spots in Bangkok, while Yvonne Lorkin explores red wine varietals. This issue, we invite you to slow down, turn the pages and escape through food.