Cuttlefish (the recipe for its preparation will be described below) is a cephalopod, which has 10 tentacles, as well as an ink bag. This animal lives in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. Cuttlefish dishes, the recipes of which we will consider today, are popular all over the world. After all, they are obtained not only tasty and original, but also quite useful. And this is due to the fact that such a marine inhabitant contains up to 80% protein and only 1% fat. This fact makes cuttlefish a valuable product that is very easily absorbed and does not leave heaviness in the stomach.
So how is cuttlefish used in dishes? The recipe for appetizers and other culinary creations will be presented below. But before that, I want to tell you about how exactly this mollusk is processed and boiled.
Step-by-step recipe for making cuttlefish for various dishes
In most cases, the represented marine resident is sold in supermarkets frozen. That is why we will talk in detail about how to carve such a product.
Clam preparation
To start, cuttlefish should be completely thawed. However, doing this with hot water is not recommended. It is best to take a frozen carcass, wrap it in a waffle towel and leave at room temperature until it becomes soft and loses ice. Next, the mollusk should be washed well under a cold stream of water, remove the shell-bone, which is located all over the back, as well as cut off the head and take out the insides.
It should be noted that during the processing of cuttlefish, extreme care should be taken with their ink bag. It must be removed very carefully, first squeezing all the contents into a separate container. In the event that you need frozen cuttlefish in order to prepare a light salad from them or boil them for snacks, it is recommended to carefully peel them. If you intend to stew or fry the mollusk, it is better to leave the shell, because it will make the taste of the dish more saturated.
Heat treatment
The cleaned and prepared cuttlefish should be dipped in boiling salted water and cook over medium heat for about half an hour. By the way, this time is not suitable for all mollusks. So, small-sized and young cuttlefish (the recipe for dishes with this product is presented below) are cooked much faster (in a quarter of an hour). Moreover, we highly recommend not buying large mollusk in stores, as its meat always turns out to be tough and not very tasty.
After the marine inhabitant is cooked, it must be thrown into a colander, completely deprived of liquid and immediately used to prepare various dishes.
Stuffed Cuttlefish: Cooking Recipe
To create such an exotic dish you will need:
- fresh champignons - 120 g;
- young cuttlefish, processed and boiled - 550 g;
- sweet onions - a couple of heads;
- fat cream - 250 ml;
- hard cheese - 130 g;
- sea salt and any aromatic spices - add to taste;
- refined vegetable oil - use for frying mushrooms.
Cooking process
To create such an unusual dish , finely chop fresh champignons, fry them in vegetable oil with chopped onions and spices. Next, you need to grate hard cheese on a coarse grater and immediately lay out to the mushrooms. After that, prepared cuttlefish must be stuffed with the resulting mass, put in a deep, oiled form, pour with whipped cream and put in the oven for 20 minutes. Serving such an unusual lunch should be accompanied by a side dish in the form of boiled rice and slices of fresh tomatoes.
Tasty and juicy pasta with cuttlefish
To prepare this simple, but very tasty dish, you must purchase:
- thin spaghetti (you can take regular pasta) - 200 g;
- cuttlefish - 550 g;
- white sweet bulbs - 3 heads;
- large meaty tomatoes - 3 pcs.;
- dried basil - ½ spoon;
- fresh garlic - 2 small cloves;
- fresh greens (dill, parsley) - in a bunch;
- refined olive oil - at personal discretion;
- sea salt and other spices to taste.
Cooking process
Cuttlefish, the recipe of which can include thin spaghetti and pasta, is especially tasty if aromatic spices are additionally used for such a dish. Thus, it is necessary to clean the heads of onions, chop them with rings and fry in vegetable oil along with clam and seasonings. After the products are covered with a golden crust, they need to add gruel from fresh tomatoes, dried basil, grated cloves of garlic and chopped greens. In this composition, the dish must be stewed for 10 minutes. At the end of the prepared sauce, put the boiled spaghetti or pasta, mix everything thoroughly, warm and serve with fresh vegetables.
Cuttlefish risotto and its ink
To prepare such an exotic dish, you need to purchase the following components:
- long-grain rice (can be steamed) - 200 g;
- cuttlefish - 400 g;
- shellfish ink - 7 ml;
- aromatic spices, sea salt - add at discretion;
- white onions - 2 pcs.;
- drinking water, and preferably fish broth - 1 l;
- dry white wine - 110 ml;
- unrefined olive oil - 30 ml.
Cooking process
In a deep saucepan, warm the unrefined olive oil thoroughly, and then put onions, chopped into cubes, and fry until transparent. After that, it is necessary to add seafood to the same dishes and cook in a similar way until golden brown.
While the seafood and vegetable are fried, you can do the processing of long - grain rice. It must be sorted, washed, deprived of liquid and put in a skillet for cuttlefish. In this composition, the ingredients should be prepared until the cereal has absorbed the oil. Next, the products must be flavored with aromatic spices, pour wine and let it completely evaporate over a very high fire. After this, the gas needs to be reduced, cuttlefish ink added to the stewpan, mix well, pour 1 liter of boiling water or hot fish broth so that it covers rice by about 1 centimeter. In this composition, the components should be cooked under a closed lid until the cereal is ready.
Serve risotto to the table in hot or warm form along with a salad of raw vegetables and fresh herbs.