What do i do with an Octopus/squid?

[Chittychangchang]

Hi Members.

Looking for suggestions on how to cook squid/ Octopus.

Stopping it taste of rubber would be good.

How do i re-create that Thai street food style bbq squid?

Cheers

CCC

[notmyself]

It needs to be cooked very quick and therefore over a good high heat. Score the flesh after cleaning to help it cook faster and reduce it curling and also skewer it for the same reason. Rub a little salt or fish sauce on it first

[onionluke]

I like a bit of basil and onion stir fry with the mushroom sauce , you then get a sort of pat kapow pla mook .

edit - my typing is about as good as my cooking .

Edited June 20, 2013 by onionluke

[AnotherOneAmerican]

Slice the squid into rings

Dip in flour

Flash fry

Pla Muak chup bairp tawt

[justben]

I like stuffed squid. Don't really like the Thai way of dealing with squid at all. Here's a recipe that looks OK:

http://catalancooking.wordpress.com/2010/04/19/squid-stuffed-with-aubergine-and-prawns/

Octopus is tough no matter what. To get it nice and tender'ish, a slow cooked seafood stew can work

Edited June 20, 2013 by justben

[wayned]

I cook giant squid whenever I can get it. The big slabs avaiable in Big C or Tesco. The first ting you have to do is remove the tough membrane on each side. Pretty much like "skinning" a fish. Then wash it and dry it. Score both sides in a criss cross manner salt and pepper and spices as dersired ( I use cajun seasoning), and dust with flour. Put in a very hot pan with a little olive oil. Sear both sides about 2-3 minutes and remove, don't overcook. Squeese some Thai lime juce on it. It's really good, tender and juicy! Serve with a sald and frech fries made from leftover baked potatos.

The most labor intensive task is removing the outter membrane. You need a very sharp flexable knife and a little "knife skills"!

[laochef]

Agree with previous posters. Octopus and squid are two different creatures; squid benefits from brief cooking but to tenderize an octopus, the best way is to beat the sh-t out of it - a wooden pestle does the job nicely...

[SICHONSTEVE]

If it is an octopus I would advise you to get it off of you very quickly as they are very dangerous creatures and not to be toyed with!!!!.

[Donnie Brasco]

If you have a computer try going to a site called "Googen".

Use your keyboard to ask the Googen how one should prepare a squid, octopus, cuttlefish.

You'll find lots of video and no shortage of print on these distant cousins of the common spider.

Try the quick grilling technique and then sautée in olive oil, black olives, white wine and herbs.

In a pinch, ( in my case at least) the larger Big C squid make excellent condoms.

Other TV members may have had better experiences with the smaller ones.

No matter what your preference, your guests will comment . . . . . rave, even:-)

Do not ever attempt this with the dried squid iteration.

[hellodolly]

Fast deep fry them in some oil you have been cooking other things in.

[Wavefloater]

Agree with previous posters. Octopus and squid are two different creatures; squid benefits from brief cooking but to tenderize an octopus, the best way is to beat the sh-t out of it - a wooden pestle does the job nicely...

I've also heard that you should put a cork (the wine bottle type, I assume) in the boiling water when making octopus to help with tenderness if boiling is part of the preparation.

But it always confuses me why people post queries like this on TVF. Wouldn't a food forum or even just using Google be a better approach to getting this type of info? Besides, it seems that most of the posters here are Brits, and we all know that British cuisine is one of the biggest oxymorons there is. (Just kidding -- I;m sure that there must be a few people in Britain who can do more than over-cook veggies or make meat pies and pasties.)

Edited June 21, 2013 by Wavefloater

[Wavefloater]

Fast deep fry them in some oil you have been cooking other things in.

LOL -- Is that to give tham an authentic Thai street vendor taste? I think some of those guys have been operating for years, using the oil they bought on day 1 and just topping it up when needed.

Edited June 21, 2013 by Wavefloater

[sbk]

We must be eating different creatures. The octopus we get a are quite small and very tasty. I like them in a nice coconut milk soup with lemongrass and some shallots. Bit of fish sauce and maybe a chili or two.

[barefoot1988]

beer battered squids!

these are like crack, once you pop you cant stop!

[notmyself]

We must be eating different creatures. The octopus we get a are quite small and very tasty. I like them in a nice coconut milk soup with lemongrass and some shallots. Bit of fish sauce and maybe a chili or two.

Can't as I have ever been a big fan of octopus and have seen very little on Samui anyway. Perhaps they have been fished out in the area like lobsters. Squid, on the other hand, is so in abundance that vendors at the fish market will throw in a couple for nothing which makes for a very nice lunch indeed!

Cut into rings as suggested above though instead of flour I use tempura, garlic powder, onion powder (not flakes) with plenty of salt and pepper to dredge the rings in before deepish frying. Squeeze of lime juice to finish. I look at it like this.... I go to the fish market in order to buy a snapper for my tea and in return they give me a free lunch. Wonderful.

Slightly aside though still related is to do with the bar/ restaurant of a (Thai) friend of mine. She often knocks out the odd bar snack it is gets late such as a small bowl or two of fries (from frozen), garlic bread, onion rings etc. I've been suggesting for a good year or so that she should do squid rings because it's cheap, fresh and unusual. What gets me is that she doesn't even have fries, garlic bread or onions rings on the menu so it would be better to give people a little much of something she does have on the menu because they may come back the next day for dinner as they enjoyed the taste. Oh well, what do I know?

[valsoldese1]

If is an octopus boil it in water with a couple of corks from a wine bottle.

Let it cool and slice it into small peaces.add garlic and celery salt olive oil and lemon and you have a exquisite Mediterranean octopus salad

[rascalman]

Here is my answers.

#1 Give to Thai who like that rubber stuff.

#2 Throw in garbage with lid.

#3 Give to cats.

[stoffel45]

In the Mediterranean countries, they batter - like hammering on a rock - the octopus - which kills it and tenderises it.

[jojodontyouknow]

The rule of thumb when cooking an octopus is to boil it for a few hours until it it fork tender. Then when you think it's ready, boil it for another 30 minutes. I use water, red wine, red wine vinegar, bay leaf, orange slices, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, whole black peppercorns, some whole cloves of garlic and a few small onions sliced. After it's cooked, and cooled, peel off the purple tentacles and skin until you have only white flesh. Slice that up, and marinate in good olive oil, salt and some lemon juice and parsley. Then just tell me what time to come for dinner and what kind of wine you like ;-)

[wayned]

If the octopus is live you could always fix korean Sannakji. http://www.mappingwords.com/2011/11/07/how-to-eat-sannakji-korean-live-octopus/

[Morakot]

#4 delete your account

[wayned]

I cook giant squid whenever I can get it. The big slabs avaiable in Big C or Tesco. The first ting you have to do is remove the tough membrane on each side. Pretty much like "skinning" a fish. Then wash it and dry it. Score both sides in a criss cross manner salt and pepper and spices as dersired ( I use cajun seasoning), and dust with flour. Put in a very hot pan with a little olive oil. Sear both sides about 2-3 minutes and remove, don't overcook. Squeese some Thai lime juce on it. It's really good, tender and juicy! Serve with a sald and frech fries made from leftover baked potatos.

The most labor intensive task is removing the outter membrane. You need a very sharp flexable knife and a little "knife skills"!

Sorry, left out an important process. After you wash and dry it put it in a plastic bag and pound it with a flat mallet until it is 1/2 as thick. Use a wooden mallet or the flat side of a meat tenderizing mallet, not the one with the points or you will turn it into mush. You only need to pound it gently, not pulverize it.

[monkey4u]

Cover in breadcrumb mix and deep fry add tartar sauce yummmm

[connda]

Here is my answers.

#1 Give to Thai who like that rubber stuff.

#2 Throw in garbage with lid.

#3 Give to cats.

Give it to me!!! Lemon and butter and salt -- grill -- enjoy. Or cut into strips about 4 inches long, saute, add to a nice marinara sauce, simmer, serve with paste and a glass of nice red wine. Maybe its an acquired taste.

[Michaelaway]

If you have a computer try going to a site called "Googen".

Use your keyboard to ask the Googen how one should prepare a squid, octopus, cuttlefish.

You'll find lots of video and no shortage of print on these distant cousins of the common spider.

Try the quick grilling technique and then sautée in olive oil, black olives, white wine and herbs.

In a pinch, ( in my case at least) the larger Big C squid make excellent condoms.

Other TV members may have had better experiences with the smaller ones.

No matter what your preference, your guests will comment . . . . . rave, even:-)

Do not ever attempt this with the dried squid iteration.

Odd... yet, bizarre.

[IMA_FARANG]

If your really interested in cooking Octopus, Calamari, or Squid there are various methods of cooking any of them on the net.

Do a Google or Yahoo search.

You will even find one to do grilled Octopus on a skewer (baby Octopus, such as you might find in Thailand at a Tesco store).

Be warned however, it takes 24 hours to marinade a thawed baby Octopus to tenderize it properly.

The method used is to marinate the whole cleaned Octopus in a sealed plastic bag with the marinade for 24 hours by keeping it in the fridge for 24 hours.

That's how it gets tenderized.

Once it's tenderized then it is basically grilled over a charcoal but aromatic wood fire that gives it the smoke taste of the wood and grilled for roughly 5 minutes on a wood skewer.

Cedar wood or even Pine wood chips to smoke the Octopus during grilling is essential for that smoke taste.

I've actually had smoked baby Octopus on a skewer in Greece. I assure, when cooked properly it is wonderful, and NOT rubbery at all.

In Greece, of course, it's served with olive oil as a dip, some fresh herbs, and nice fresh homemade bread. Salt, pepper, and maybe a little Paprika sprinkled on it to taste.

Edited July 2, 2013 by IMA_FARANG

[Chittychangchang]

Cooked a nice squid Madras curry today..

Tenderized the 1 kg squid with a rolling pin for 5 mins.

fried with onions, garlic, pepper, chilli.

Added curry sauce.

Boiled for 2 mins then simmered for a hour.

Left to sit for 5 mins and served on a bed of thai jasmine rice.

CCC