Baked Squid with Braised Beans & Chorizo from Kitchen by Mike– Photo by Alan Benson
I love the flavours of Spain, particularly the wonderful bean stews. If you’re lucky enough to find little bottleneck squid the size of your thumb, there’s no need to clean them inside, as they won’t yet have grown a cellophane-like quill nor be big enough to eat fish. All they’ll need is a quick rinse to remove any sand and grit. If the squid are larger than this, ask your fishmonger to clean them for you, keeping the tentacles.Piquillo peppers are available in jars at good delis, but at a pinch you could just use grilled capsicum to add a similar smoky-sweet flavour. Sorrel can be found at most farmers’ markets – if you have no luck, a handful of baby spinach leaves is a great substitute. Don’t forget to soak the cannellini beans the night before . . .
Baked Squid with Braised Beans & Chorizo
Serves 4
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
150 g chorizo, peeled and cut into chunks
600 g baby squid, with tentacles, rinsed and patted dry
small handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped
lemon wedges, to serve
BRAISED BEANS AND CHORIZO
250 g dried cannellini beans
pinch of bicarbonate of soda
75 ml extra virgin olive oil
200 g chorizo, peeled and cut into chunks
1 onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
125 g piquillo peppers, seeds removed, cut into strips
1 tablespoon thyme leaves
2 teaspoons smoked sweet paprika
250 ml (1 cup) white wine
750 ml (3 cups) chicken stock
large handful of baby sorrel or spinach leaves
For the braised beans, soak the beans overnight in 1 litre (4 cups) of water with the bicarbonate of soda.
The next day, drain the beans and rinse well, then place in a saucepan, cover with fresh water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, then drain and rinse again.
Heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof frying pan over medium heat, add the chorizo, onion and garlic and cook until the chorizo is golden brown and the onion and garlic are translucent. Add the piquillo pepper, thyme and paprika and saute for 5 minutes to lightly caramelise. Add the beans and wine and simmer until the liquid has reduced to a glaze. Add the stock and simmer very slowly for a further 2 hours or until the beans are tender. Scatter over the sorrel or spinach leaves and keep warm.
When the beans are almost ready, preheat the oven to 250°C.
Heat the olive oil in another frying pan over very high heat. Add the chorizo and saute until lightly caramelised, then add the squid and toss quickly. It is crucial that the pan is really, really hot, otherwise the squid will stew.
Tip the squid and chorizo into the pan of braised beans, then transfer to the oven and bake for 5–10 minutes or until the squid is tender and golden. Scatter over the chopped parsley and serve with lemon wedges.
