Slow-cooked squid, tomatoes, olives and preserved lemons
Ben Tish, Culinary Director at The Stafford Group
This Italian-inspired slow-cooked squid recipe from Ben Tish is cooked in one pan, with tomatoes, preserved lemons, and chilli – finished with pitted green olives.
Boil a pan of water and blanche the tomatoes for a minute until the skins peel off. Drain and leave to cool for a few minutes before discarding the skins and roughly chopping the flesh.
Heat a large casserole or ovenproof pan over a low-medium heat and add a lug of olive oil. Cook the onions and garlic slowly for a few minutes to soften - without colour - and then add the parsley stalks, bay, chilli, fennel seeds, and tomato paste. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring as you go and then add the wine. Reduce by half and then add the chopped tomatoes.
Bring to a simmer and then stir in the squid and season well with salt and pepper. Place on the lid, transfer to the oven and cook for 1 ½ hours. After one hour add the olives and leave the lid off.
When the stew is ready, the sauce should be thick and rich and the squid tender, remove from the oven and leave to rest for 20 minutes before stirring in the preserved lemon and parsley.
Serve on slices of toasted sobrasada bread or toasted ciabatta grilled with olive oil.