Squid with lemon mayo
If your image of eating squid is comparable to eating elastic bands, then do try this way of cooking them – the high heat and literally seconds in the oven means your squid will be meltingly tender and delicious, not an elastic band in sight! You can also cook cuttlefish in the same way.
It’s one of those dishes where you cook it and eat it so make sure all your prep is done in advance and that your friends and family are ready to eat as soon as it comes out of the oven. A squeeze of lemon and a dunk in some mayo is all you need as accompaniments.
Make sure your oven is well heated and you have a good fire burning – you want it around 325°C on the base of the oven floor, so just slightly less than for cooking pizza. You’ll also need a good wide pan that won’t warp in the heat of the oven – we use an old cast iron frying pan that’s been handed down generations.
Ingredients
Serves 4-6 as a starter or as nibbles
1kg/2.2lb squid, cleaned
3 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tbsp coarse sea salt
2tbsp coarsely ground black pepper
2 tsp chilli flakes
Lemon wedges and lemon mayonnaise
Method
1. Slice the squid into 1cm strips, rinse in cold water and dry thoroughly on kitchen paper or a clean tea towel.
2. Heat your pan in the oven on a bed of embers until super hot – this will take a good 10 minutes.
3. Mix the salt, pepper and chilli flakes in a large mixing bowl so you can toss the cooked squid in it as soon as it’s ready.
4. Put the squid in another large bowl with the sunflower oil with a good pinch of the salt, pepper and chilli mixture.
5. When the pan is smokingly hot, put half of the oiled squid in it and stir fry it with a wooden spoon. It will take literally seconds to cook – it’s ready when the squid has turned a bright white colour and becomes firm – but not too firm! You may not even have to put the pan back in the oven as it cooks so quickly.
6. Turn the squid into the large bowl of with the rest of the salt, pepper and chilli flakes; keep this warm for a moment.
7. Quickly cook the rest of the squid in the hot pan in the same way and add to the already cooked squid in the bowl. Shake it all together with the salt and pepper and chilli flakes.
8. Shake off any excess spices and put the squid in a serving bowl. Squeeze over a couple of lemon wedges and serve the wood-fired salt and pepper squid at once with the lemony mayo.
Image: Nick Hook @nickhookphoto