If squid scares you, it really shouldn’t. It’s not as pricey as a great cut of grass-fed beef and cooks uber quickly. When I prepared this Paleo Squid Stir Fry and served it in a half-a-squash as an edible bowl, Dave gave it one taste and said “it is outrageously good.”
There’s the easy way to deal with squid and the hard way. This time around I went the easy way. :)
So what does that mean? Well I bought the squid raw, already cleaned and ready to cook, as opposed to the last time when I bought them whole and had to separate the tentacles and tubes from the body and ink sac.
If you’re squeamish around tentacles (or maybe your kids won’t eat something with legs) I would recommend buying all tubes, instead of a combination of tentacles and tubes like I usually do.
You can shorten the cook time by baking the squash a day (or two or three) ahead of time and then simply warm it up before you begin preparing the stir fry.
Winter Migration
Jeff & I are currently on the road, migrating south for a bit more time in the sun - before the snow and cold permanently moves in on Chicago. If you’re near Atlanta, GA or Orlando, FL or Miami, FL definitely let me know and we can meetup with a cup a coffee in the next few days.
Squid Stir Fry in a Paleo Squash
Ingredients
- 2 acorn squash
- 5 slices bacon, chopped
- 5 shallots, halved
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 1 large carrot, peeled, halved and sliced
- 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
- 1lb squid
- 1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 cup broccoli
- 1/4 cup fresh mint
- sea salt and coarse ground black pepper, to taste
- 4 tablespoons butter, optional
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Slice the squash in half. Lay out a piece of parchment paper on a large rimmed baking sheet and lay the squash cut side down. Transfer baking sheet to the oven and set timer for 40 minutes.
- Add sliced bacon to a wok or large skillet over medium heat.
- After 2-3 minutes add shallots, bell peppers and carrot. Stir to combine.
- Slice the tubes of the squid.
- After bacon starts to brown add mushrooms, squid (both tentacles and sliced tubes) and fish sauce. Stir to combine and let cook until ends of the tubes start to curl.
- Add broccoli and fresh mint a pinch of sea salt and a shake or two of black pepper. Stir to combine everything and cook until broccoli turns bright green and carrots are the consistency you prefer. (I don’t like them mushy so I don’t cook for too long.)
- Remove squash from the oven. Using an oven mit, transfer squash to a plate. Using a large spoon separate the squash from the sides but keep everything within the shell. Add a tablespoon of butter to the squash and stir so it melts. Continue with each acorn squash you’re serving.
- Spoon a serving of the squid stir fry on top of the loosened acorn squash and serve.
- Enjoy! :)
