“Grilled” Calamari and White Bean Salad
This is an impressive side dish that is easy to throw together and very customizable. Fresh squid is marinated in olive oil, garlic, and chili flake and then “grilled” in a very hot pan. The calamari is then tossed with beans, olive oil, lemon, parsley, and thinly sliced shallots. The resulting dish is fresh, light, savory, and satisfying. Spoon this salad on some grilled sourdough to make a great appetizer or light lunch.
Keep in mind when making this recipe:
- Make sure your calamari is fresh. It should smell clean…not fishy.
- You can use all sorts of beans…cannellini beans, butter beans, navy beans, cranberry beans… all are good options.
- Good quality canned beans work very well (instead of cooking dry beans).
- The calamari can be grilled in the traditional sense instead of using a pan.
- The salad can be served immediately after mixing or allowed to marinate overnight.
- You can add any number of ingredients you may like…roasted peppers, grilled onions, roasted cauliflower…all would work well.
Round out the spread with:
“Grilled” Calamari and White Bean Salad
"Grilled" calamari and white beans dressed with olive oil, lemon zest, and parsley.
Equipment
- Fine grater or Microplane
Ingredients
"Grilled" Calamari
- 1/2 pound cleaned fresh calamari (tubes and tentacles)
- 2 tsp garlic, microplaned or finely grated/minced (about 1 clove)
- 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp crushed red chili flake
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt (1/4 tsp table salt)
- a few grinds of fresh black pepper (pinch)
- neutral-flavored cooking oil, as needed
Salad
- 1.5 cups cooked cannellini or other white beans, room-temp and drained of their liquid (canned or cooked from dry beans, see note below*)
- 3-4 Tbsp shallot, thinly sliced (about 1/2 shallot)
- 3 Tbsp parsley, roughly chopped
- 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp garlic, microplaned or finely grated/minced (about 1/2 clove)
- 1.5 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- zest of 1 lemon (zested with a microplane)
- a few grinds fresh black pepper
- salt to taste
Instructions
"Grilled" Calamari
- Make sure the calamari is clean and the body does not contain the hard "pen" inside of it. Cut the body into 1/3 inch rings and each tentacle section into 2 pieces. If you are grilling the calamari, it may be easier to marinate and grill the calamari BEFORE cutting it into rings. This will avoid small pieces of calamari falling through the grill grates.
- Put the calamari pieces into a small bowl along with 2 tsp grated garlic, 1 Tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp chili flake, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and a few grinds of black pepper.
- Mix everything together and allow the calamari to marinate for at least 15 minutes…up to a few hours.
- Get a large cast-iron or nonstick pan hot over high heat Add a thin layer of neutral-flavored cooking oil to the pan. When the oil is smoking, carefully add the marinated calamari to the pan in an even layer, without overcrowding the pan. You may have to do this in two batches if your pan is not big enough. Once the calamari is in the pan DO NOT move them around. You want the calamari to stay in one spot and develop a nice char/crust. ***Alternatively, grill the calamari over high heat using a gas or charcoal grill until nicely charred***
- Cook for about 1 or 2 minutes, or until a nice char/crust has developed on the first side. Use a spatula to flip the calamari and briefly cook on the other side, about 30 seconds.
- Remove the calamari from the pan/grill and on to a plate. Allow calamari to cool for at least 10 minutes before tossing in the salad. Do not put a paper towel underneath the calamari because any juice that releases from the calamari should go into the salad.
Assemble the salad
- In a large bowl, combine grilled calamari (and any juices that released), 1.5 cups drained beans, 3-4 tbsp thinly sliced shallot, 3 Tbsp chopped parsley, 3 Tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp grated garlic, 1.5 Tbsp lemon juice, zest of 1 lemon, salt, and pepper. Toss everything tohether.
- Adjust seasoning as necessary and serve with lemon wedges if desired.
Notes
* 2/3 cup dried beans can be cooked by soaking overnight in 4 cups water and then cooking the beans in lightly salted water with half an onion, one clove garlic, half a carrot, one stalk celery, and a bay leaf until tender. This may yield you more beans than you need for the recipe depending on the type of bean you use. Make sure to let the beans cool to room temperature before using in the salad.