Despite what you may think, Vietnamese food at core is very simple cooking that relies on a handful of fresh ingredients. Dishes like this one, inspired by an appetizer I ordered at Charles Phan’s Slanted Door in San Francisco, showcases how straightforward cooking can produce surprisingly complex and beguiling results. That's the genius of any good cooking.
Phan’s restaurant version employed terrific fresh squid and small whole padron peppers (the kind used for Spanish tapas), but those mild peppers were a little flat in flavor, especially when up against the piscine squid. To spice the dish up in my home kitchen, I use peppers with a little more heat, such as large padrons, Portuguese, Anaheims, Fresnos, and the like. Right now, Melody Ranch, a local Watsonville, CA, farm that’s been my chief source for fun peppers this year, is selling its last harvest of moderately hot chiles. This simple preparation allows me to savor them more. (You may recall that I’ve been championing pan-frying chiles with salt and eating with rice!)
If at all possible, clean your own squid. I’m fortunate to get freshly caught squid caught from the Monterey Bay at my local health food store, Staff of Life. Regardless, young squid, with bodies about 1 inch wide and tubes only 5 inches long are ideal. If they’re not available, use the next size up and rinse them well, maybe with a little salt to refresh them.
Enjoy the squid as an entrée with lots of rice, or as a nosh, maybe with some bread to sop up all the juices.
Squid Stir-fried with Chile Peppers
Mực Xào Ớt
Serves 2 as a main dish, 4 with 2 or 3 other dishes
1 ½ pounds whole squid, cleaned, or ⅔ pound cleaned squid (use tube bodies and tentacles)
½ teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
5 ounces moderately hot, large chiles (e.g, Anaheim, Padron, Fresno, Portuguese, or a combination of chiles)
1 or 2 pinches of salt
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1. Cut the cleaned squid tubes into ¾ inch thick sections. Leave the tentacles as is. Transfer to a strainer, rinse well with water and then pat dry with paper towel. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, cornstarch, fish sauce, and lime juice, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the squid and toss to coat well. Set aside to marinade.
3. Stem the chiles and halve them lengthwise. If you want to retain the heat, keep the seeds and membranes. Otherwise, scrape them out with your knife and discard. Cut each chile half crosswise into 1 inch thick pieces. Set aside.
4. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chile pieces, spreading them out in one layer. Let them cook, searing and hissing for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle in the salt, then stir and flip them over, letting them sear for 1 to 2 minutes more. When fragrant (you may sneeze) and slightly soft with a few brown spots, transfer the chile to a plate.
Increase the heat to high and add the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the shallot, stir-fry for 1 minute until soft and a bit blistery. Add the squid, leaving and marinade behind. Stir-fry for about 45 seconds until they have curled up and turned white. Add back the chile, stir fry to heat through, another minute or so. A slightly thickened sauce should have formed. Transfer to a serving plate or shallow bowl and serve immediately.
Tuty says
This looks like a very delicious dish and I love squids.... fresh and salted ones too. I ought to try it albeit with frozen squids that I need to thaw first....
Tony An Dong says
Food and water in Vietnam
In the past each Vietnamese village would have had its own way of arranging a feast, but there were certain habits that were universal, many of which are still common today.
For example, each tray of food is never served to an odd number of people and everyone around the tray should be from the same age group and social background.
“In the past we never used tables. Tables were used for drinking tea afterwards. We would eat on beds or on a mat near the family altar to
Michelle Nguyen says
This recipe looks great. I have been needing more squid ideas.
Joel says
The fish sauce and lime juice stand out as making this dish Vietnamese for me. North of the border in Cantonese-speaking parts of China, we do prepare virtually identical dishes at home or dai pai dong. The ingredients will probably not include fish sauce (but it is if the chef is from Chiu chow, Teochew in local dialect romanization, or Chaozhou in Mandarin, which is in Eastern Guangdong province), and we use bell peppers which is not hot at all. In most cases, to kick up the spiciness as sq
Andrea Nguyen says
Joel, I love Chiu Chow food. Is there a Chaozhou cookbook you recommend? I've not seen one.
The black beans and chile do sound nice as squid is generally pretty bland stuff. Definitely, scoring large-size squid is a must to tenderize and beautify them. The local squid we get here are small and very easy to eat. The flesh is only about 1/8 inch thick.
How do you say "stir-fried squid" in Chinese to make it sound taboo?
Lorette says
Surfing on my new pc I discovered your vietworldkitchen already added to my favourites with this squid recipe. Many years ago I tasted Vietnamese food in S.F. for the first time and visited the small restaurant twice a day (the portions were tiny but unforgettable). Living in a North European country there's not one to be found to my great disappointment, so, am happy to have found you. Will surprise my daughter with another squid recipe. She's half Italian, she can cook and loves squid like me.
Andrea Nguyen says
You're very welcome, Lorette!
Lorette says
It's been a while, but I'm back with a fine article on Vietnamese food from the Guardian. I'm tempted to visit your beautiful country in the far East especially as winter is on its way in our direction with the temperatures dropping fast.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2010/oct/12/hanoi-street-food
Canada Goose Danmark says
There is goodness to life that cannot be denied.
Canada Goose sale says
A strong man will struggle with the storms of fate.
CALLOFECOCK says
tVi hermes replica dLq http://www.runescapechat.com/forum/member.php?u=1100715 yJh gucci duffle bags hMo http://bostoneers.org/member/28400 sLu http://community.atom.com/Post/Marked-down-Fashionable-Totes/03EFBFFFF025782F20008018287EA rOw gucci handbag outlet rVy gucci bag ou
Lorette says
Almost three years later and so much older I'm back again with another Guardian article on Summer Inspiration from Vietnam: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/26/dining/a-southeast-asian-treat-tasty-in-any-configuration.html?hp&_r=0
When I was on vacation in the not too southern part of France (Isère) I tasted delicious stuffed squids from their hypermarket Leclerc. Yummie!
A big h
Lorette says
Apologies for the error; it was the NEW YORK TIMES, not the Guardian this time. What was I thinking?
Lorette says
Lorette said...
Apologies for the error; it was the NEW YORK TIMES, not the Guardian this time. What was I thinking?