Crispy tender Fried Calamari served with a Creamy Chipotle Sauce and fried to golden perfection. Excellent!
(Calamares Fritos con Salsa Cremosa de Chipotle)
♦
The other day when I made this recipe, I started to try and remember exactly when was the first time I tasted fried calamari. I believe I was 9 years old.
That was many, many years ago….
Since then, I can honestly tell you I have had and enjoyed calamari in many different ways!
I’ve enjoyed calamari in many Italian dishes, Latin dishes, in salads, in tacos, in soups etc…love, love calamari!
And I especially love tender fried calamari especially with a great dipping sauce.
So here’s one of my favorite ways of many this delectable dish.
It’s simple and hyper delicious, especially with a Creamy Chipotle sauce!
Squid and Fried Calamari
Here’s an interesting fact, did you know that fried calamari, is considered one of the classiest of fried foods?! Being so delicious how could it not be!
Okay, so first, let me start by explaining a few things about squid. A squids body is made up of two key parts. The mantle and tentacles.
The mantle is the long cone shaped exterior.
And even if you have never eaten squid ever before, surely at some point you have seen the very familiar O-shaped rings.
These come from the mantle of the squid. And if by chance, you have been at some restaurant and wondered, “What is that person eating? Hmm, it looks like onion rings? Maybe now you will wonder if it is indeed fried calamari.
As for myself, I love the tentacles the best! I love them! I find the tentacles to be tastier.
Tips and Tricks for Cooking Calamari
If not cooked correctly or over cooked, calamari tends to become tough and rubbery.
But no worries, there are some tips and tricks to making sure your calamari comes out tender and hyper delicious.
For the best most tender FRIED CALAMARI you must follow some rules…..
- Calamari must be fried in VERY hot oil…..
- Fried for 90 seconds to 2 minutes in BATCHES! Not all at one time! Otherwise you will lower the heat of the oil and oh that’s a bad thing! You will end up with a rubbery, tough, chewy substance similar to rubber bands; that is, if you have ever had those! (chuckle!)
- Whether you use flour or cornstarch, coat your calamari at the very last second, right before you are ready to cook it.
(Mix the spices into flour and coat calamari at the last minute)
SECRET TIP
If you have the time to follow this particular step, please do, you will be happy you did!
After you have cut up the mantle into rings and tentacles are also ready, rinse and soak in buttermilk/egg mixture for 20 minutes or an hour. Even better yet, soak calamari overnight in a bowl and store in fridge.
This step helps in preventing the calamari from becoming tough and rubbery.
Creamy Chipotle Sauce
You cannot have the best fried calamari without a great dipping sauce!
But if you want to try a different sauce than the traditional marinara dipping sauce, I urge you to try this creamy chipotle sauce.
It’s delicious and also very simple to make.
A little bit of mayonnaise, chipotles peppers in adobo sauce, fresh garlic, lemon and salt=DONE and YUMMYNESS!!!
I also like to drizzle a cilantro vinaigrette over my fried calamari.
A little bit of olive oil and fresh cilantro, simple! Totally optional but surely worth it.
Garlic Aioli Sauce
Another delicious sauce to serve fried calamari with is this creamy garlic aioli sauce.
Light mayonnaise, fresh garlic, zest of a lemon and fresh parsley. YUM!
Full recipes for sauces below in recipe box ↓
For another delicious dish using calamari, you may also like this Mexican dish.
Pozole de Mariscos recipe or Seafood Pozole.
NOTE: If you would like to learn how to clean squid or calamari the right way, take a look at this article by The Spruce.
I hope you love this Fried Calamari with Creamy Chipotle Sauce as much as we do! So Yummy!
For more delicious seafood recipes, you will also love these:
Fried Avocado Stuffed with Shrimp
Tacos Gobernador (Crispy Cheesy Shrimp Tacos)
Mofongo con Camarones (Garlic Mashed Plantains Stuffed with Shrimps in a Salsa Criolla)
Camarones a la Crema (Shrimps in a Creamy Chipotle Sauce)
For a full list of our seafood dishes, click here→ Seafood
📖 Recipe
Fried Calamari with Creamy Chipotle Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 lb fresh squid if you cannot find fresh squid, you can use frozen good quality squid with rings and tentacles
- 1 cup buttermilk can use milk
- 1 cup flour
- 1 egg beaten
- 2 tsp paprika
- salt and pepper to taste
- oil for frying
CREAMY CHIPOTLE SAUCE
- 2 chipotle peppers chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 cloves of garlic coarsely chopped
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- pinch of salt
CILANTRO VINAIGRETTE (OPTIONAL)
- 1/4 olive oil
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
Garlic Aioli Sauce
- 5 tbsp light mayonnaise
- 2 fresh garlic cloves minced
- 3 tbsp fresh parsley
- zest of half a lemon
Instructions
Creamy Chipotle Sauce and
- Add the chipotle peppers, mayonnaise, lemon, garlic and pinch of salt to a food chopper and blend unto well combined. Add salt to taste. Set aside.
Cilantro Vinaigrette
- Add the cilantro and olive oil to a blender and blend for a few seconds. Set aside.
Garlic Aioli Sauce (Bonus Dipping Sauce)
- Mix all the ingredients together and refrigerate until ready to use.
For the Calamari
- Rinse squid under cold running water. Separate the body from the tentacles with a knife.
- Cut body (mantle) of squid into 1/2 inch rings and cut tentacles into two to three pieces.
- In a bowl whisk egg and add buttermilk. Add calamari pieces and let soak for 20 minutes.
Frying Calamari
- In a fryer or heavy pot, add about two inches of oil and heat to 375 F (190 Celsius).
- In a bowl mix flour, paprika, salt and pepper. Toss the calamari in with the seasoned flour to cover. Shake off excess flour.
- Fry until golden brown (90 seconds). No longer than about two minutes or the calamari will become chewy and rubbery.
- Serve with Creamy Chipotle sauce and serve immediately. Sprinkle Cilantro Vinaigrette over top of calamari.
Nutrition
Liz says
Omg yesss! My husband loves calamari and this creamy chipotle sauce is perfect! Thanks for sharing this!
Cathy says
Thank you Liz!
Neli Howard says
Now, this recipe will be one of my favorites. I think even my very picky oldest son might even like this dish! I can hope at least
Cathy says
🙂 I hope he does too! Let me know! Thanks Neli!
Lizzie says
I love calamari! Your tips are so comprehensive! I love the idea of soaking the squid overnight
Cathy says
I love calamari too! Yes it makes the calamari perfectly tender! Thanks for commenting Lizzie.
Amy | The Cook Report says
Oh wow LOVING the sound of that sauce!
Cathy says
Thank you Amy!
Sonia says
This looks and sounds so delicious! Both my boys love calamari and I am always looking for something different to try with it. Definitely trying this ! Thank you!
Cathy says
Thank you Sonia! I hope you and your boys love it, let me know how you and your boys like it! 🙂
Patricia says
I don’t like this new calamari Sauce, the old sauce was excellent, why mess with perfection.
Cathy says
Hey Patricia! I’m sorry, I’m not sure what you mean about old sauce, I have not changed the sauce in this recipe, so I am not sure what you mean or how I can help…however, with all the sauces out there to choose from for fried calamari, I understand we all have our preferences. If there is any help I can offer, please feel free to ask though. 🙂
Molly says
Hi, I just wanted to say that the creamy chipotle sauce is fabulous! It’s great for many things beyond calamari – it’s good on burgers, bowls, sandwiches, …. I’ve actually been making it fairly frequently just to have in the fridge. I’ve made it with half plain Greek yogurt and half mayonnaise a couple of times and really like that variation.
Cathy says
Thanks awesome to hear! So happy you are really loving it and finding other foods to use it in! I have used it in burgers before but never sandwiches, will have to give that a try for sure! Thanks for the idea! I also have used plain yogurt but haven’t tried the half yogurt and half mayo so will definitely give that a go, esp since you say you really like that variation! Great input! Thanks for taking the time to comment!
Jessica Ruiz says
Just made these! Delicous! Made the chipotle dipping sauce to go with. Everything came out perfectly! Will definitely make again!
Cathy says
Hello Jessica! That is wonderful to hear! So happy you really enjoyed this recipe! Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know how much you enjoyed it!
Pat says
Do you rinse the buttermilk off the calamari before adding to flour mixture?
Cathy says
Hey Pat! There is no need to rinse the buttermilk off. Simply drain excess and flour. I hope that helps. Let me know if there is anything else I can help you with! Happy Holidays!! 🙂