Calamares (Deep-fried Squid Rings)
Ingredients
- 500 g squid rings washed
- Milk
- Lemon juice or calamansi juice
For the coating:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 eggs beaten
- 1-2 cups panko-style breadcrumbs
Instructions
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Place the squid rings in a bowl. Add lemon juice (about 2 tbsp) and enough milk just to cover the squid rings. Cover with cling wrap and let it marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes to one hour. Once the time is up, drain and wash the squid rings. Pat them dry using paper towels.
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While preparing the squid rings, place a pan on a stove over low heat. Add oil when the pan is hot enough (about 1 inch deep is fine). Let the oil become hot over this low-medium heat because prepping the squid rings might take time.
To coat the squid rings:
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Add flour, garlic powder, onion, powder, salt, and black pepper in a bowl. Mix and set aside.
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In another bowl, add beaten eggs. Set aside.
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Add the panko-style breadcrumbs in another bowl.
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Dip each squid rings in this order: 1-flour mixture, 2-beaten eggs, 3-panko-style breadcrumbs. (I am not sure, but maybe you can do this quicker? Let me know.)
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Place the coated squid rings on a plate.
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Fry them in hot oil over medium-high heat until golden brown. Do this in batches and don’t overcrowd the pan. Mine didn’t take more than 2 minutes for each batch.
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Let them drain the excess oil by placing them in a strainer or a cooling rack with baking sheet under it. See notes for more details.
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Enjoy with your favorite dipping sauce. I had two dipping sauces – (1) mayo-ketchup dip, and (2) tartar sauce.
Recipe Notes
- Marinating the squid rings with milk & lemon makes them tender.
- I fried the squid rings over medium-high heat. I immediately removed them when they turned golden brown. Letting them stay in the oil for a long time may result to a rubbery/chewy texture.
- After frying, I placed them on a strainer but not on top of each other or you can place them on a cooling rack over a baking sheet (in single layer) to drain excess oil. I suggest not placing them over/on top of each other because the oil from the top goes to the Calamares below and absorbs the oil. This may cause them to be soggy. Once they’re “dry”, I transferred them to a plate.