Italian Stuffed Calamari Recipe (2024)

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Ingredients

• Prep Time: 40 Min
• Cook Time: 20 Min
• Servings: 4

PLEASE NOTE: We indicate the weight and not the number of squids. The size of the squid can vary a lot. The squid used in many recipes vary from about ⅘ cm (about 2 inch) to over 30 cm (about 12 inch.). We used squid of about 15 cm (about 6 inch).

• 600 g (1.3 pound) of Calamari
• 120 ml (½ cup) of dry white wine
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 30 g (2 tablespoons) of chopped parsley
• 100 g (3.5 oz) of bread (about 4 slices of sandwich bread)
• 1 whole egg
• 50 g (½ cup) of grated Parmigiano cheese
• 5 large tomatoes, like vine tomatoes, or 15 small tomatoes, like cherry or grape tomatoes
• 6-8 tablespoons of Extra virgin olive oil.
• fine salt to taste

Step 1) - Once you have cleaned the calamari and separated the tentacles from the body, chop the tentacles into very small pieces on a cutting board.

Step 2) - Cook over medium heat the small pieces of tentacles in a frying pan with 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, one clove of garlic and a pinch of salt to taste. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 60 ml (¼ cup) of white wine and let it evaporate over high heat, cooking for about 3 minutes. Then turn off and set aside.

Step 3) - Soften the bread in a little water then squeeze well to remove the excess and put it in a bowl. Remove the garlic from the frying pan. Chop the garlic and 1 tablespoon of parsley together then add them to the bread. Mix and add these ingredients to the squid in the frying pan.

Step 4) - Cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat, stirring well. Let it cool down a bit then transfer to a bowl. Now add the egg and Parmigiano cheese.

How to Stuff Calamari

Step 5) - Stir to mix the ingredients. The filling is ready. Now we have to stuff the Calamari tubes.

Step 6) - Fill the calamari tubes ¾ of the way with a teaspoon. IMPORTANT TIP: calamari reduce slightly during cooking, while the filling increases in volume. If you overfill them you risk that they break in the pan or that a part of the filling comes out. Close the stuffed squid tubes with some toothpicks and set them aside.

Step 1) - In a frying pan, sauté a clove of garlic in three tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Add the stuffed squid tubes and cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Then add 60 ml (¼ cup) of white wine and let it evaporate over high heat, cooking for about 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, wash the tomatoes and cut them into pieces. You can use both large tomatoes, such as vine tomatoes, or small tomatoes, such as cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes. In place of tomatoes you can use tomato passata and with this make an incredible tomato sauce to cook your stuffed squid.

Step 2) - Now add the chopped tomatoes, 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley and a pinch of fine salt to taste. Cook covered with a lid over low heat for about 30 minutes. Gently flip the squid two or three times during cooking. When calamari are cooked, remove the toothpicks and serve (see the paragraph below: " What to Serve with Stuffed Calamari").

Step 1) - In a frying pan, sauté a clove of garlic in three tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Add the stuffed squid tubes and 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley. Cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat, turning them from time to time. Then add 60 ml (¼ cup) of white wine and let it evaporate over high heat.

Step 2) - Cook the stuffed squid covered with a lid until they have a nice golden color. It will take about 20 minutes depending on the size. If the squid swell during cooking, prick them gently with a toothpick. Taste and season with salt if necessary.

This recipe, thanks to cooking in a pan, makes the Calamari crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, with a very pleasant contrast of textures.

When the squid are cooked, remove the toothpick and serve them whole or cut into slices.

Step 1) - First, remove the tentacles. So, grab the squid's head with one hand and its body with the other. Gently pull the head to remove the entrails. Then remove the hard clear cartilage from the body.

Step 2) - Remove the horny beak located in the center of the tentacles, the eyes and all the surrounding part with the help of scissors or a knife.

Step 3) - Remove the skin and rinse the calamari tubes under running water to remove any residue, being careful not to break them. Wash also the inside of the calamari tubes and the tentacles as well, to remove any residual sand. Dry with kitchen paper and set aside, ready to be used in your fantastic stuffed squid recipes!