Squid Stuffed with Lobster
Fred worked at Toqué! in the early 1990s, and one of his many tasks was cleaning squid. Every so often, the Anglophone sous chef would order from the Quebecois fishmonger at La Mer, and one day “15 pounds” of squid was heard as “50 pounds.” That week Fred cleaned 150 pounds of squid. He couldn’t smell squid for about ten years without feeling sick, but he’s back on the squid train now. The only way he can bear it, though, is filled with lobster and cooked in lobster juice.
Recipe information
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the lobster, and cook for 5 minutes. Pull the lobster out of the pot, discard the water, and chill the lobster.
Step 2
Shell the lobster, keeping as much meat as possible. Dice the meat into 1/4-inch (6-mm) cubes, and keep the shells. Set both aside.
Step 3
Bring a small pot of water to a boil, add the pasta, and boil for about 4 minutes, or until shy of al dente. Drain and transfer to a decent-size bowl.
Step 4
Add the lobster meat, tomato sauce, mayo, Tabasco, Pernod, and parsley to the pasta and stir to mix. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
Step 5
Crush the lobster shells into 1-inch pieces. In a sauté pan, sauté the shells in a film of olive oil over medium-high heat until the lobster water is gone from the shells. Add the water and unsalted butter and simmer over medium heat for about 20 minutes. Don’t let it become dry, but almost dry. You should have about 1/2 cup (125 ml) liquid. Strain the liquid and set aside.
Step 6
Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Stuff the pasta mixture into the squid tubes, and seal the open end of each tube with a couple of nonmentholated toothpicks. Just stick them right across the opening, pinching the tentacles into the opening. Lay the stuffed beauties side by side in a baking dish or baking pan. It should be a snug fit so the pan is less likely to dry out. Pour the strained lobster juice over them, then top with a few pats of escargot butter and the bread crumbs.
Step 7
Bake for about 15 minutes, or until bubbly. Remove the toothpicks and serve with a handful of olive oil–dressed cress (greens) on each plate.
How to clean squid: A brief explanation
Step 8
Wear gloves; many people have contact allergies to squid. Clean the squid in the sink under cold running water.
Step 9
Rip off the head. It’s the part from which the legs hang down.
Step 10
Pinch away the beak. It’s on the center, nestled among the legs.
Step 11
Slide out the blades. There are two of them, plasticlike, along the inside of the tube.
Step 12
Peel off the dark skin.
Step 13
Rinse the squid well, inside and out, to eliminate all traces of mucus and sand.
