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Crispy Ginger Calamari with Homemade Sweet Chilli Sauce
A South-East Asian spin on crispy calamari inspired by Oceania Cruise's Red Ginger Restaurant – The Finest Cuisine at SeaⓇ.
- Serves: 4 |
- Difficulty: easy
- Prep Time : 30 mins |
- Cook Time : 20 mins
Ingredients
Pickled Shallots
½ C (125 ml) red wine vinegar
1 tsp (5 ml) salt
3 shallots, thinly sliced
Sweet Chilli Sauce
½ C (125 ml) sugar
¼ C (60 ml) rice vinegar
2 Tbsp (30 ml) fish sauce
4 garlic cloves, chopped
a big knob of ginger, chopped
10-15 long red chillies, chopped
1 Tbsp (15 ml) cornflour
1 Tbsp (15 ml) cold water
Calamari & Garlic Crisps
500 g calamari tubes and tentacles, defrosted
2 C (500 ml) flour
2 Tbsp (30 ml) ground ginger
salt and pepper
enough oil for deep frying
1 head of garlic, peeled and sliced thin
To Serve
fresh coriander, chopped
Method
Pickled Shallots
Mix the red wine vinegar, sugar and salt together in a bowl until dissolved, then mix in the sliced shallots. Allow to stand and pickle for at least 30 minutes.
Sweet Chilli Sauce
Add all of the sweet chilli sauce ingredients, except the cornflour water, to a medium sized pot. Mix well to combine, then place over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, mix the cornflour and water together to form a slurry and then add to the pot. Simmer for another 2 minutes to thicken, then remove from the heat and allow to cool.
Calamari & Garlic Crisps
Slice the tubes into rings, then place the tubes and tentacles into a large bowl. Pour over the buttermilk and let it sit for an hour.
After an hour, drain the calamari in a colander and rinse to get rid of the excess buttermilk. Mix the flour and ground ginger in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper.
Dredge the calamari in the flour in batches and lay it out on a baking tray. Heat enough oil in a large pot in order to deep fry (180 ºC). Fry the calamari in batches for 2-3 minutes or until golden. Use a slotted spoon to remove and drain the calamari on sheets of paper towel; season with salt.
Once all the calamari is fried, add the sliced garlic to the hot oil and cook until it just starts to brown, then remove it from the heat and drain on some paper towel. It should be light rather than dark ,as it can become bitter if it is too dark.
Serve crispy calamari garnished with garlic crisps and chopped coriander and with homemade sweet chilli sauce for dipping on the side.
