Calamari Fritti
Calamari Fritti
Simple and delicious, this calamari is lightly dusted in flour, salt, and pepper, and fried in hot olive oil. Serve with fresh lemon. I would enjoy a Sicilian white with Calamari Fritti — Firriato Etna Bianco 2012, Sicilia comes to mind when I think of fried calamari.
Servings
4
Ingredients
- 2 pound frozen or fresh calamari tubes and tentacles
- 1 gallon blended oil, for frying
- ½ - 3/4 cup flour
- salt and pepper
- 1 lemon, cut into halves
- 1 brown paper bag
Directions
- Defrost and clean calamari, separating the tubes from the tentacles. Cut off wings and be sure tubes have no cartilage remaining inside.
- Once calamari is clean, cut calamari tubes into thin, even ribbons. Cut tentacles in half.
- Put 1 gallon of blended olive oil into 8-quart or larger pan, and heat on stovetop at high heat.
- Put flour into a heavy-duty brown paper bag with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add sliced calamari to bag and shake enthusiastically. Have fun!
- When oil is hot, test it with a pinch of flour. If oil bubbles, then the oil is hot enough.
- Rip open bag and carefully add calamari to the hot oil. (Note: When you add calamari to the oil, it will make the oil bubble and increase the likelihood of coming out of the pot. Please use caution.)
- After all of the calamari is in the oil, use a spider to keep calamari submerged. Cook for approximately 1-1.5 minutes or until crispy and browned.
- Remove calamari from oil and place on paper towel or brown paper bag to absorb excess oil.
- Immediately put calamari on serving plate. Season with pinch of salt and pepper, garnish with fresh half lemon.