Purchasing ready-to-eat seafood in the store, one wonders the question of how and what dried squids or other exotic seafood are made of.
What do you really have to eat?
Priorities in people's lives are constantly changing. This statement can be fully attributed to food. In recent years, beer has become the most popular drink among the population, and dried squid is the best snack for it. Especially on days of big holidays, everywhere you can see groups of people holding a beer bottle in one hand and a small bag with fragrant shavings or slices in the other. Indeed, a packaged product attracts many people, both in taste and smell. But it is worth considering what is actually in these bright, attractive packages. Judging by the names in the list of ingredients, there really is a squid. But is it the clam that can be bought at any store? In fact, everything is somewhat different. Studying what dried squids are made of, experts came to the conclusion that this is a completely different instance. In fact, giant animals live in the sea, which are also squid. But their meat has such a disgusting taste that it is almost impossible to use it in its natural form.
Product processing
Food process engineers from the East have developed a special technology that makes it possible to use tough and tasteless meat of certain squid individuals for food. But still, knowing what dried squids are made of, it’s somehow not very easy to buy them. In principle, according to technology, meat goes through several stages of processing:
- carcass cutting;
- cooking;
- mixing with additional components;
- drying;
- frying;
- shredding;
- reapplication of additional ingredients;
- additional drying;
- final processing;
- packaging.
As a result, a finished product appears on store shelves. Bright bags quite quickly go hand in hand. Everything seems to be normal, but deep down there is some kind of deception. Although scientists claim that the product is natural and completely harmless, but knowing now exactly what dried squids are made of, I don’t really want to buy them somehow.
What do dried squids consist of?
Fresh squid meat contains a large number of vitamins of groups B, E, PP and C, as well as trace elements and beneficial amino acids. This stimulates brain activity and markedly improves memory. It contains a lot of iron and potassium, which normalize the work of the heart, selenium, which removes heavy metal salts from the human body, and iodine, which supports the work of the endocrine system. In addition, it is able to stimulate the production of gastric juice, which significantly improves the digestion process. Such meat is rich in protein, but, despite this, it is quite easily absorbed by the human body. Due to the low calorie content, squid is classified as a dietary product. However, as a result of processing, only part of this wealth is preserved in the product. And if we consider dried squids, their composition will no longer be so enviable. But this does not mean at all that they do not need to be eaten. A sense of proportion and common sense should be present in everything. Take, for example, regular packaged dried squid. Their composition is approximately as follows: meat - 89%, salt - 1%, sugar - 7.2%, monosodium glutamate - 1%, D-sorbitol - 1.8%. Even by the percentage of components, we can conclude that such a product is better to eat in limited quantities. After all, high salt content can lead to unnecessary deposits and puffiness, and chemicals can cause a severe allergic reaction. So it’s better not to risk it.
Face to face
When buying dried squid in a store, it is difficult to imagine the animal from which it was all made. Many are used to seeing these mollusks solely in the form of a frozen carcass or finished product. What does a real squid look like? A photo can only give an external view. Yes, this is a spectacular creature, and its gigantic individuals by its size simply amaze the imagination. I immediately want to think that the finished product will be just as flexible, delicate and appetizing enough. Honestly, some of the desired qualities are justified to some extent. Indeed, squid smoked or fried looks very impressive. What does dried squid look like? A photo of such food makes you think. When you see a chaotic bunch of lifeless fibers in front of you, doubts arise about taste and pleasure. But this is unjustified excitement. In fact, dried squid has a rather pleasant, slightly sweet taste, and when chewed it even becomes a little softer. Perhaps that is why it was this seafood in recent years that has become a favorite treat for children and the best beer snack for adults.
Natural squid drying
It is not necessary to use large production halls and large enterprises for drying mollusks. In Thailand, for example, the local population of small villages does this. They even developed their own technology for the production of dried squid. The recipe for the process is quite simple. To begin with, the animals caught are washed and freed from the insides, thereby turning them into a semi-finished product. Then the carcasses are laid out on specially prepared grills and left to dry under the scorching sun. The process lasts 1-2 weeks. As a result, juicy squid meat turns into a rough sole with a slight salt coating on the surface. As such, they are sold on city streets. To give the product a more presentable appearance, the seller either passes the meat through the press, making it look like a snack, or performs additional processing, as a result of which the product becomes softer and easy to chew. And those who want to try such a dish are always there.
DIY Dried Squid
But not everyone has the opportunity to go to Thailand and try the local delicacy. It turns out that you can cook such a dish yourself. Dried squid at home is quite tasty. First you need to stock up on the following products:
1 kilogram of squid fillet will require a liter of water, 60 grams of salt, 3-4 peas of allspice and a couple of bay leaves.
The production technology is as follows:
- Wash the mollusk carcass. After this, it must first be rinsed with boiling water, and then immersed in cold water. This technique will help to easier remove skin from it.
- From the products according to the recipe, prepare the brine, put the prepared squid fillet in it and leave it there overnight. The process can be accelerated by making the solution more concentrated (8 tablespoons of salt per liter of water).
- In the morning, get the meat from the brine, dry it and cut into thin rings, straws or tear in the form of chips.
- Lay the blanks on a baking sheet lined with parchment and send to the oven at 50 degrees for 3 hours.
Now the dried-up blanks can be poured into a plate and served with beer in the company of friends.