Crispy Fried Squid | Chef John’s Cooking Class

Cut the red and green peppers into small dices.

Clean the squid hood in water. Using a sharp knife, open the squid hood lengthways from opening to tip along the visible line. Using a knife, gently scrape to remove the slimy mucus on the squid surface. Then pat dry with paper towels. To make gear cuts: score the flat squid piece lengthways (Don't cut through, about 2/3 depth) from end to end, at 0.25cm apart on each cut. Then divide it lengthways into two pieces in the middle. Turn the squid piece 90 degrees, cut into strips at about 1cm strips.

In a bowl, combine Shaoxing wine, salt, sugar, ground black pepper, ground white pepper and lemon juice, toss with your hand to mix well. Then marinate for 15-20 minutes.

In a bowl, combine squid, flour, custard powder, corn starch, yeast, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, egg, and water. ( Note: Don't add water at one time. Separate the amount into two steps. You can adjust the amount according to your experience), Blend to mix well, then add a little bit of oil to add shiness.

In a deep cooking pan, add 1.5qt oil, turn on the heat to medium, as the oil temperature reaches 400°F/200°C, add 3-4 pieces of squid to test the temperature to prevent the squid pieces stick together. Note: adding squid one piece at a time. You can make more batches of fewer pieces in each batch. When the oil temperature is good, turn the heat to medium-low, add the rest of the squids, fry until lightly golden, remove from oil. As the oil temperature backs up, re-fry for 20 seconds, then remove from oil. Set aside.

In a large cooking pan over medium heat, add butter, stir fry red and green bell pepper for 20 seconds until fragrant, add fried squid pieces, turn off the heat, stir fry using the remaining heat, add pepper salt(or garlic salt), then turn the heat to high, stir fry until fragrant. Done and serve.