Crispy Calamari

The restaurant appetizer family favorite is now easier to make at home than you thought.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb cleaned Calamari tubes sliced into rings (leave tentacles whole)

• 1/2 Lemon, freshly squeezed

• 2 cups Flour

• 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper

• 1/2 tsp Paprika

• 1 tsp Kosher Sea Salt

• 1/2 cup Buttermilk

• Peanut Oil for deep Frying

• Lemon Wedges for garnish

• Cocktail Sauce or Garlic Aioli for dipping

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place the sliced calamari into a medium-sized mixing bowl along with lemon juice. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes.

2. Preheat peanut oil in a deep fryer or cast iron Dutch oven to 375° F

3. In a bowl, combine flour, cayenne pepper, paprika, and Kosher salt. Once fully combined, remove half of this mixture and place half in another bowl for the dredging station.

4. Set up a 3-stage “dredging station”. Bowl 1: spiced flour Bowl 2: buttermilk Bowl 3: spiced flour

5. Remove the calamari from the lemon juice marinade, then dredge each piece into bowl 1 of spiced flour, then into bowl 2 of buttermilk, then finally into bowl 3 of spiced flour. Shake off excess after each dredge. Repeat this until all calamari has been dredged.

6. Make sure the oil is up to temperature before adding small batches of calamari. The calamari will drop the temperature of the oil, so don’t add too much too quickly. Fry each batch for 2-3 minutes until golden brown, then place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil. Immediately salt the calamari with fine salt to ensure that the salt will stick.

7. Serve with cocktail sauce or garlic aioli with lemon wedges on the side.

   Things you'll need for this recipe...