Bit of a newbie on the squid scene. Recently discovered plenty in my area (accidently, when I noticed them chasing my soft bait lures), so I turned my attention to these fascinating creatures. More importantly, I love eating calamari.
I've really enjoyed the journey of learning to catch these guys, though still find I have to put a bit of work in to get a few. But its better than watching TV.
Anyways, over to processing and cooking. I have kept things simple, cleaned hoods either into rings or cut diagonally, lightly scored and seasoned then quickly shallow fried. I'm down to less than one minute so the inner flesh is still basically translucent. But I just can't seem to get the texture right - like how it always (almost) is in pubs and restaurants. I have even tried freezing them to see if that tenderizes them a bit, as I assume most restaurants don't use fresh squid and probably hook them out of the freezer. That didn't seem to make much difference!
Where am I going wrong? These are broad squid, average size about 15-20cm hoods.
All your cooking tips gratefully received!
Cheers all.