It's no secret that seafood is the best source of easily digestible proteins and a storehouse of substances useful to the human body. Mineral salts, iodine, folic acid - this is not a complete list of what mussels are rich in. At the same time, they contain a minimum number of calories, thanks to which seafood has won an honorable place in the diet of people who care about their health and beauty.
The main secret to choosing squid
Many housewives have a question: how to cook seafood so that they retain the maximum of their beneficial properties, but at the same time have a rich taste and pleasant aroma? One of the key points in making squid dishes is the selection of quality ingredients. Most often on the shelves of supermarkets and markets you can find frozen squid carcasses. First of all, pay attention to the color and smell of the mollusk (the carcass should have a uniform shade and have a pleasant fishy smell). Instead of frozen glazed squid, culinary experts advise choosing unpeeled mollusks, because after cooking they will have a more delicate texture and a pleasant taste.
Step-by-step recipe: squid stuffed with rice and egg
This dish is suitable both as a daily dish, and as a festive treat for guests. The recipe for its preparation can have various variations depending on the hostess's preferences and culinary skills. To make squid stuffed with rice and egg, you will need the following ingredients:
- raw squid carcasses - 4 pieces;
- rice - 200 grams;
- chicken eggs - 2 pieces;
- onions - 1 head;
- garlic - 1 clove;
- sour cream - 100 grams;
- parsley, dill (fresh) - several branches;
- tomato paste - 2 tablespoons;
- butter - 50 grams;
- salt, pepper, seasonings - to taste;
- flour - 1 tablespoon.
Squid pretreatment
Squid carcasses must first be thawed, cleaned of film and viscera, washed under running cold water. The cleaned squid carcasses are dipped in boiling salted water for 30 seconds. If you exceed the cooking time of the mollusks, they become stiff. Therefore, it is necessary to strictly observe the technology of their preparation. Do not drain the water in which the squid was cooked. It will also be needed for making the sauce, in which squid stuffed with rice and egg will be stewed.
Cooking rice and egg toppings
Rice and eggs must first be boiled. Then the rice should be mixed with finely chopped eggs and chopped herbs, add a few tablespoons of sour cream, salt and seasonings to taste. Stuff the boiled squid tightly with the mixture, chop the edge with a toothpick so that the filling does not fall out. When preparing the filling, it should be borne in mind that boiled squid does not have a pronounced taste and aroma; therefore, seasonings and salt must be added to rice based on your own preferences. It can be fresh herbs, various seasonings, combined with seafood, aromatic oil, garlic, rich sauces and gravy.
To prepare the sauce, finely chopped onions and a clove of garlic, cut into layers, should be fried in butter. After it acquires a golden color, it is necessary to add tomato paste and a little water to it, in which squids were cooked. The resulting sauce is stewed over low heat for three minutes, then several tablespoons of sour cream are added to it, mixed and spread in it squids stuffed with rice and egg, cover and simmer for five minutes. In order to make the sauce thicker, you can add one tablespoon of flour to it and mix it well to avoid the formation of lumps. After turning off the fire, squid stewed in the sauce is sprinkled with chopped greens and covered with a lid. The dish can be served both warm and chilled.
Squid stuffed with egg and rice. Gourmet Opinion
The taste of squid stuffed with egg and rice is described quite often in recipes and reviews. The most whimsical experts say that this dish lacks some “zest”, so it should be supplemented with additional ingredients that have a more spicy taste.
The recipe for squid stuffed with rice and egg can be improved indefinitely: add additional products to the filling, cook a variety of sauces, serve the dish hot or cold. In this case, it all depends on your imagination. According to the chefs, the most popular modifications to this dish are the use of additional ingredients in the preparation of the filling. Gourmet reviews indicate that mushrooms, cheese, onions, seasonings, white wine and shrimp can make a stuffed squid a real culinary masterpiece. The simplest and most affordable additives are mushrooms and onions. Many housewives use them in order to surprise their guests with a new variation of a recipe familiar to everyone.
Stuffed Squid with Mushrooms
In order to make the dish more nutritious, you can add not only boiled eggs to the rice filling, but also finely chopped fried mushrooms. To do this, pre-fry the washed and dried mushrooms in a small amount of butter or vegetable oil (in this case, champignons are ideal). If fried mushrooms are present in the dish, then cream should be used instead of sour cream to prepare the sauce. They will give squid a pleasant creamy taste and will blend in well with the mushroom flavor of the filling. The remaining features of cooking squid stuffed with mushrooms, rice and egg remain the same as in the above recipe.
Rice, onion and eggs as a filling
If the dish needs to be added a little piquancy and freshness, then finely chop green onions and mix them with rice and boiled eggs before you start stuffing with the mixture of pre-cooked squid. In this case, it is better not to stew the clams in tomato sauce, but simply pour them with pre-cooked and chilled broth. It is the squid stuffed with rice, onions and eggs that will be an excellent cold appetizer that will decorate any holiday table. A little fresh greens, beautifully laid on top of the finished dish, will be an excellent aesthetic completion of the culinary masterpiece.
Obviously, squid is a versatile product that can be stewed, baked, fried, stuffed. They are combined with many additional ingredients and at the same time have an affordable cost. Even an inexperienced housewife will be able to cook a delicious and healthy seafood dinner for her family, following the simple tips described above. So this species of mollusks has every right to take pride of place both in our daily diet and on a chic festive table.