Steamed, Stuffed Squid

When the kids wolfed it down in no time and then asked for more, we knew it was good.

steamed stuffed squid

This squid recipe actually came about 2 months after the previous Fried Squid Fail. Annie had some time to shake off the bad mojo and was willing to have another go at cooking squid, something she wanted to do as one of her New Years’ Cooking Resolutions. But no frying this time.

Cookbooks Galore

We happened to be at Popular Bookstore, a bookstore in the nearby BDC neighborhood of Kuching. They have a wide selection of cookbooks, but not the usual ones by international publishers and authors famous in the West. These were mostly books by local authors and publishers, focusing on local dishes and cuisines. Annie was in heaven.

One of the books she was reading was called “Mama Steamed Delicious” by Jamie Jong. It was all about steaming different kinds of savory Chinese dishes. Annie kept saying to me, “Ooh, look at this recipe! I wanna make this!”

One of the recipes she was interested in trying was this Steamed Stuffed Squid. It looked simple enough, and sounded like it would taste terrific. So, she bought the book. Soon after, we went to the market to pick up some large squid and other ingredients.

Steamed Stuffed Squid Recipe

adapted from “Mama Steamed Delicious” by Jamie Jong

Ingredients:
400 grams squid (cleaned, heads & skin on)

Filling:
300 grams minced poprk
1 salted egg
1 Tbsp chopped garlic
1 Tbsp chopped shallots
dash of pepper

*Note: the original recipe called for a salted egg but we used a regular egg and about 1 Tsp of salt.

Method:
1. Clean out the squid bodies, reserving the heads and not removing the skin.

2. Mix the filling ingredients.

ground por shallots and egg

3. Spoon the filling into each squid, about 3/4 full.

stuffing squid with ground pork

4. Use a toothpick to skewer the squid and secure the head back onto the body.

skewering stuffed squid

Stuffed Squid, Ready for Steaming

stuffed squid

5. Steam over high heat for 15 minutes. Remove and let cool before cutting the body into chunks.

6. Arrange the squid chunks and spoon over some of the liquid collected from the steaming plate.

steamed stuffed squid

Serve with rice.

This was a completely delicious dish. The minced pork filling with the garlic and shallots was so tasty! I ate my squid with a little sweet chili sauce drizzled on top. The kids gobbled up their squid pieces (sans chili sauce) and declared to Mommy that it was good.

I am amazed that this steamed squid dish was so easy to prepare. The hardest part was cleaning out the squid. But if you can get your fishmonger to do it for you, then this recipe wouldn’t be hard at all!

I hope that you will get to try this steamed stuffed squid recipe out.

Aloha, Nate

11 thoughts on “Steamed, Stuffed Squid”

  1. Wow! I've got to try this…I love squid, but will definitely get the guy to clean them out for me…

  2. Hurray! It looks delicious. Doesn't it feel good to cross off another thing from your "to-try" list?

  3. This recipe looks great! I think the true test is that the kids liked it! What could be better.
    My mom made stuffed squid like this during our "Feast of te Seven Fishes" every Christmas Eve. I can still taste it!
    Thanks Annie!
    pizza on earth,
    albert grande
    The Pizza Promoter

  4. Yum, that does sound good and easy! I wonder why they recommend keeping the skin on? Is it more for presentation or does it allow it to cook longer along with the stuffing? I was thinking 15 minutes seem long for squid to avoid it getting rubbery. So does the skin keep it from cooking too fast? And did it taste different with the skin on? I saw some cleaned squid (with skin off) at my grocery store the other and your last two posts on squid has got me hankering for some!

  5. I love stuffed squid, yet, have never succeeded at making them, stuffing explosions as it where. Maybe leaving the skin on is the trick.

  6. @all – thanks for your comments!

    @Jenster – totally!

    @Sonia – yes, it's worth a shot.

    @pizzatherapy – Albert my friend! Thanks for mentioning your Seven Fishes feast. I'd love to try that someday.

    @SingleGuyBen – I don't really know if the skin serves any other purpose than presentation. It's such a thin, easily breakable membrane that I doubt it has any bearing on cook time or taste. I'd love to see what you come up with.

    @Bob – the trick is to not overstuff.

  7. I have made stuffed squid, it's seems quite challenging, you have done it very well : )
    Janet @Gourmet Traveller 88

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