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Calamari “Pasta”

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Easy and delicious homemade calimari pasta grain free Calamari Pasta

One one of our first dates, my husband ordered fried calamari at a restaurant. I was definitely unsure about it but finally worked up the courage to try it… it was actually good! Even though it was good in awful-deep-fried-PUFA-oils, I wasn’t sure I could handle it in any form that actually resembled a squid…

Fast forward a few years (and much higher grocery prices) and Calamari/squid is one of the least expensive wild caught seafood options. I found it on sale for $3 a pound at our local store and bought some with the resolve to figure out a healthy way to cook it. I did make a healthy version of fried calamari in coconut oil, which turned out great, but I wanted to experiment with other forms of cooking it.

After some browsing in an old Italian cookbook, this rustic calamari pasta seemed like a good recipe to adapt with healthy ingredients.

If you’ve never tried Calamari (squid), or have never tried it in any form that isn’t deep fried, I’d encourage you to branch out and try this recipe. If cooked correctly, Calamari can be delicious and tender. My kids actually loved this recipe and being able to see that they were eating “Octopus.” It’s definitely one of my more adventurous recipes but it is inexpensive and nutrient dense!

This recipe serves 4-6 people.

Calamari “Pasta”
 
Easy and delicious homemade calimari pasta grain free Calamari Pasta
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Prep time

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Total time

 

Author:
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients
  • 1 pound of wild caught Calamari tubes and tentacles, defrosted
  • 4 small sized zucchini or 2 medium
  • 1 large onion
  • 1 cup of sliced mushrooms
  • Salt, pepper, garlic powder, basil and oregano to taste (I used about 1 teaspoon of each) I buy all of my spices in bulk here.
  • 3 tablespoons butter or coconut oil for cooking
  • 2 tablespoons white wine to de-glaze (optional)

Instructions
  1. If it isn’t pre-cut, slice the calamari tubes into thin slices which will make rings and leave the tentacles in tact.
  2. Peel the onion and thinly slice into rings. Peel the zucchini and using a peeler (or food processor if you have one), slice the zucchini into “noodles.” I just used a peeler and was able to turn them all in to noodles in about 5 minutes.
  3. Put 1 tablespoon of the butter or coconut oil in a large skillet and add the onion. Saute about 2 minutes until starting to become translucent.
  4. Add the zucchini and another tablespoon of butter/coconut oil and sprinkle with about half of the spices. Saute for another 5-6 minutes over medium heat until the zucchini is just starting to soften. You don’t want it too soft at this point and depending on your stove, this may only take 2-3 minutes. If at any point during the cooking liquid starts to accumulate in the pan as it cooks off of the zucchini or mushrooms, carefully pour the liquid off. You should be able to saute and slightly brown the vegetables.
  5. Add the mushrooms and the squid with the last tablespoon butter or coconut oil. Add the rest of the spices. Saute 5-6 minutes or until Calamari is just cooked but not rubbery. Splash with the wine (if using) to de-glaze the pan and add flavor. Saute one minute and remove from heat.
  6. Serve immediately.

Notes
TIPS: You can also toss in 1 cup of pasta sauce at the end if you prefer a tomato based pasta, just omit the wine. If you don’t use the tomato sauce, it is excellent garnished with a wedge of lemon to squeeze over the finished “pasta.”

Have you ever cooked squid? What is the most adventurous thing you’ve cooked or eaten?

 

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Filed Under: Recipes, Seafood

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  • nebtlly

    I’ve had calamari but never cooked it – will definitely have to now, though!

    The oddest thing I’ve eaten to date is probably “Rocky Mountain oysters,” or, more indelicately, bull testicles. Fried up on a grill, they’re incredibly like my memory of chicken nuggets (haven’t actually had those in over a decade!): a little grainy in texture and with a mild but pleasant flavor :)

  • http://twitter.com/MzKynd MzKynd

    The only way I have ever tried calamari was of course the traditional fried, though that recipe looks delish!

  • Elena @ Affording Reality.com

    Most of the time, I eat calamari fried, like you mentioned, but it is also delicious in seafood paella (rice based dish). Another great option (if you can find it, I have not yet) is grilled cuttlefish with parsley and garlic, garnished with aioli. By far the oddest thing my mom would make is baked sheep’s head (my dad’s favorite) which included everything except the eyes. I always got a bite from the brain off my dad’s plate. It is actually pretty tasty with enough garlic, olive oil and parsley on top!

  • Samantha

    Also an awesome way to cook it is to dice up onions and garlic (and anything else you might want to add, diced mushrooms or scallions, etc), season with salt and pepper and Bragg’s Liquid Aminos (or other sauce, ie hot sauce). Take the calamari tubes and stuff with mixture, then use toothpicks to seal the tubes closed. Grill until cooked. Dip in sauce (I like Liquid Aminos) and they taste just like potstickers!!

  • http://rpsmiles.com/category/latest-news Del Mar Dentist

    I like the idea of this dish. It is completely vegan. Will children notice there is actually no pasta in it?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    That is a great idea! I never would have thought of that, but it sounds great! Also makes me think of stuffing them with jalepeno and bacon or other combinations!

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Mine don’t seem to mind at all…

  • Samantha

    Never really thought about it but I guess any sort of dumpling or ravioli might work this way! Jalapeno sounds amazing!!

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  • JuliaJ

    Hey, I’ve never actually cooked calamari, but I wanted to share a discovery I made with a pasta replacement. My mom brought home a yellow melon-looking squash one night (sorry, I don’t know the name, but I know it’s not Butternut squash) and baked it, and when we cut it open the insides looked exactly like spaghetti. The texture was almost the same as well, and the flavor was very light and unnoticeable. We’re Italian and Brasilian so pasta has been a constant throughout my life, but I switched to grain-free so I haven’t had it in awhile. Seeing this spaghetti-like squash gave me an idea, so I heated up some organic tomato pasta sauce and scooped out a bunch of the squashta onto a plate and it actually tasted almost exactly like pasta! Just wanted to share in case you wanted to try it :) I think the squash might actually be called spaghetti squash, look up pictures on Google!