Calamari Ripieni

(serves 2 | 1.5 hours | medium)

A delicious dish and the ultimate crowd pleaser! The prep takes a bit of time but once that’s done the cooking part is very straightforward, allowing you to do other things in the meantime. Serve by itself or with a simple veggie dish on the side, like steamed agretti or roast potatoes. 

2 whole squids, cleaned – 70g stale bread (roughly 2 slices) – 1 egg – milk for soaking the bread – 2 tbso grated parmigiano – 400g passata – chili flakes (optional) – 2 garlic clove, one diced and one whole – 1 handful parsley, diced – extra virgin olive oil – salt and pepper

  1. Place the stale bread in a bowl and cover it with milk, leaving it to rest for 30 minutes so that it softens. 
  2. Remove the tentacles from the squid’s main body and sauté them in the pan with some olive oil for a few minutes. Dice them up and place them in a bowl. 
  3. Squeeze the bread to remove the excess milk and place in the same bowl as the tentacles, then add the egg, parmigiano, diced garlic clove and diced parsley. Mix everything to form a lumpy paste, season to taste with salt and pepper. 
  4. Fill each squid with the mix, making sure to leave at least a 1cm gap at the top, or you’ll risk the squid overflowing whilst you cook them. Seal the ends of each squid with a toothpick. 
  5. In a large pan place a few lugs of olive oil, a crushed clove of garlic and sauté over medium-high heat. Once the garlic is golden, pour in the passata and a few chili flakes. Let the passata simmer for a few minutes before placing the squid carefully into the pan. 
  6. Cook for roughly 35 minutes, turning the squids three or four times in the process. If the sauce dries up, add a little water. Be careful to not overcook as the squid tends to turn slightly gummy. 
  7. Once cooked, place the squids on a cutting board and slice them into 2cm wide pieces, then divide the sauce equally between two dishes and top with a sliced squid each. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.