Squid With Anchovies

Ingredients

•  1 kg small squid
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• 4 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 tbs chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tbs chopped fresh basil
• 25 g anchovies, drained and chopped
• 150 ml dry white wine
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 2 tbs vermouth (optional)
• coriander sprigs, (to garnish)

Prepare the squid and cut it into strips. Heat the oil in a pan. Add the garlic, spring onions and squid and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the herbs, anchovies and wine. Cover and cook for about 40 minutes until squid is tender and easily pierced with a fork. Add lemon juice and vermouth just before serving. Garnish with coriander sprigs. Serve with boiled rice.

How To Prepare A Squid

How to prepare a squid in 5 easy steps:

1. Rinse the squid in cold water. Pull back the body pouch and pull out the quill-like 'pen'. Pull the head and viscera away from the body.
2. Pull away the mucous membrane in the pouch under running water. Peel the skin off the pouch. Pull off and skin the fins.
3. Put the head and viscera on a work surface and cut off the tentacles above the eyes. They should come away connected by a rim of flesh.
4. Remove the ink sac if you wish to use it for cooking and discard the head and viscera.
5. A toothed beak lies in the flesh which connects the tentacles together. Squeeze the beak out of the flesh with your fingers and discard it.

The squid is now ready for you to cook; the body pouch, the tentacles, the fins and the ink sac.