Calamari Stewed with Tomatoes

Squid can be cooked one of two ways: For the blink of an eye, or for a long, long time. Anything in between and it is rubbery.

This dish, which is our version of a Southern Italian classic called calamari in umido, takes the long view of calamari cooking.


Think of this dish as something between a stew and a pasta sauce. It’s every bit as good as-is—with crusty bread, of course—as it is accompanying pasta (go with a short pasta like penne, bowties or fusilli) or, even better, a creamy polenta.

You can even add a little cheese to the polenta, if no one’s looking. Italians rarely mix seafood and cheese.

Calamari Stewed with Tomatoes Recipe

You can buy frozen, cleaned squid in the freezer section of many grocery stores. Defrost by placing in refrigerator overnight, or in a bowl of ice water. This recipe does call for an anise-flavored liquor, which you can leave out if you want, but the dish will be better with it in.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds cleaned calamari (squid), tubes sliced into rings and tentacles roughly chopped
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 sliced onion
• 1 fennel bulb, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1/4 cup Sambuca or other anise-flavored liquor
• 1 cup red wine
• 1 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
• 1/4 cup fennel fronds, chopped

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