Fish and Shellfish Recipes - Five-spice Squid Recipe

Ingredients

• 450g/1lb small squid, cleaned

• 45ml/3 tbsp oil

• 2.5cm/1 in fresh root ginger, grated

• 1 garlic clove, crushed

• 8 spring onions (scallions), cut into 2.5cm/1 in lengths

• 1 red (bell) pepper, seeded and cut into strips

• 1 fresh green chili, seeded and thinly sliced

• 6 mushrooms, sliced

• 5ml/1 tsp Chinese

• five-spice powder

• 30ml/2 tbsp black bean sauce

• 30ml/2 tbsp soy sauce

• 5ml/1 tsp sugar

• 15ml/1 tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry sherry

Serves 6

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Method:

1. Rinse the squid and pull away the outer skin. Dry on kitchen paper. Slit the squid open and score the inside into diamonds with a sharp knife. Cut the squid into strips.

2. Heat the oil in a preheated wok. Stir-fry the squid quickly. Remove the squid strips from the wok with a slotted spoon and set aside.

3. Add the ginger; garlic, spring onions, red pepper; chili and mushrooms to the oil remaining in the wok and stir-fry for 2 minutes.

4. Return the squid to the wok and stir in the five-spice powder. Stir in the black bean sauce, soy sauce, sugar and rice wine or dry sherry.

5. Bring to the boil and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Serve immediately.

Note: Squid is perfect for stir-frying as it should be cooked quickly. The spicy sauce makes the ideal accompaniment.

Variation: Use button (white) mushrooms for this recipe, or try a mixture of cultivated and wild mushrooms. Dried shiitake mushrooms would also be good but must be first soaked in water.