How to cook cuttlefish? Recipes of dishes from cuttlefish

Cuttlefish belongs to the category of cephalopod mollusks. Unlike her relatives - squids or octopuses - she has an ink bag. At the moment of danger, the cuttlefish releases a dense brown liquid from it, under the veil of which it hides. And this shellfish is called the "chameleon of the ocean", because it is able not only to change the color of the skin, but even its very structure. And such a metamorphosis cuttlefish does in just a couple of seconds. In this regard, the mollusk rarely gets caught in the fishermen's catch and, as a consequence, rarely occurs in the restaurants menu. But if you were lucky enough to become the owner of this delicious exotic, let's think about what to cook from cuttlefish.

Useful properties and applications in cooking

Let's start in order. Mollusks, and cuttlefish in particular, are very healthy. It is not only delicious, but also a dietary product. On useful properties cuttlefish surpasses meat and even fish, but the calories in it are much less. It is also rich in vitamins, especially B series, which promotes hair growth and nail strength. There are also necessary for health minerals: selenium, phosphorus, iodine, copper, zinc, potassium and iron.

Like fish of the highest class (sturgeon, salmon), this mollusc contains valuable amino acids omega-3 and 6. And its fat is an antibiotic that nature has created, that is, it does not give side effects. Recipes of cuttlefish dishes are very common in the kitchens of the countries of the Mediterranean and South-East Asia. Inks from this mollusc are painted rice for the Spanish paella and Italian pasta.

Product selection

In our country, cuttlefish on the shelves of supermarkets can be found rarely. And even then they are sold frozen. But, say, you have arrived on the Mediterranean market and ask the fish in rows to cuttlefish. Which one to choose?

Cuttlefish is not a strawberry, the principle "the more, the tastier" does not work here. On the contrary, the most highly valued are just dwarf mollusks, weighing up to 20 g. A very large specimen is only suitable for the exhibit in the museum, since, no matter how hard you try, its meat will remain stiff and tasteless.

We choose a purchase based on what dishes from cuttlefish we are going to cook. Dwarf frying in deep frying, make them shish kebabs, salads and snacks. Small cuttlefish are valued for a special nutty flavor, which disappears in larger specimens. Molluscs of medium size (300-600 g) are used in main courses. They are fried, boiled, and in Japan they even eat raw.

What to do first

Before preparing cuttlefish, you need to wash it under cold water and remove a single bone that runs all over the back. Behind the clam there is a sack. Pull out the ink on the plate. They will be needed later for the sauce, as they add spice to the dish. Then gently remove the ink bag. Throw out also the viscera, the eyes and the oral opening. If you intend to boil cuttlefish, you must first remove the skin, and when roasting or putting out the skin is best left - the taste of the dish will get more saturated.

How to prepare a frozen product

In shops cuttlefish is often sold already processed, and you do not have to mess around with removing the bag and peeling. However, there are some little tricks here. How to cook frozen cuttlefish? Do not rush events by dropping the package into hot water or sending it to the microwave. Let the mollusks unfrozen at room temperature or even better in cold water. Since we are not Japanese, we will not eat cuttlefish in raw form. Thais of these cephalopods, among other culinary methods, also dry, dry and smoke. We will limit ourselves to three traditional methods: cooking, hot and putting out.

Boiled shellfish

Now that we have only a body with ten tentacles left on our hands, we can think about how to cook cuttlefish. For salads and snacks it is boiled, and soup is prepared from the broth. Pour in a pan of water, salt it and put it on medium heat. We lower into the boiling water cuttlefish with whole carcass and cook. What time is it? It depends on the size of the shellfish. Large specimens need a long heat treatment - about half an hour. Smaller ones are brewed and for 15-20 minutes. Dwarf cuttlefish cook rarely, but if you want to decorate them with salad, after 10 minutes of stay in boiling water they will be ready. In the water, where the clams are cooked, you can put spices and herbs, an onion in the husk. Ready cuttlefish should be thrown in a colander and dried.

But this is only half the battle. How to cook cuttlefish to make it delicious? Cut the carcass into thin strips, sprinkle with lemon juice and olive oil, and decorate with greens. As a side dish to boiled cuttlefish you can serve rice or pasta, filled with ink. They are added to the dough, if you mix the vermicelli yourself.

For paella, ink mixed with wine is poured into a frying pan, various vegetables are added to taste (tomatoes, sweet Bulgarian pepper, onions, garlic) and cuttlefish. Then pour rice and stand on low heat until the liquid evaporates completely.

How to cook cuttlefish

In the Mediterranean it is customary to extinguish molluscs in white wine. In a skillet in olive oil fry the onion until golden. Add half a kilo of cut cuttlefish (you can pre-cook them before half-prepared). Pour half a glass of white wine. We cut a tomato with a piece of ground tomato, mix it with a chopped bunch of parsley and a clove of garlic, salt to taste, cover with a lid and simmer for about an hour.

Dishes from cuttlefish fried

In roasting cephalopods have their secrets. It is necessary to correctly decompose them in a pan. First we warm up the vegetable oil, in which we pre-fry a little onion and garlic. Then we place cuttlefish with tentacles upwards. When the mollusc becomes yellow, turn the other side.

In Portugal there is a favorite recipe for fried cuttlefish. At the beginning of the process we prepare the marinade. Pour into the plate 3 spoons of soy sauce and a spoonful of oil. Sprinkle with aromatic herbs to taste - dry or fresh, mix. In the resulting marinade cuttlefish (about half a kilogram) should languish 30 minutes. We heat the vegetable oil in a pan, lay the cut into thick strips of shellfish and fry over medium heat for about 7 minutes.

Cuttlefish babies

They are like spiders - these delicatessen shellfish, which are valued above the rest. How to cook small cuttlefish? There are many recipes. For the most lazy: roll crumbs in flour, and send it to a frying pan to roast in olive oil.

The labor of the more hard-working housewives will pay off a hundredfold if you prepare a dessert for dwarf cuttlefish: a salted egg is shaken with water, add flour to make a batter. You can cook it with the addition of beer or soda water. This is an excellent snack, but it can also be the main dish if you serve it with rice.