Amen Street's Jumbo Calamari

A copy cat recipe from one of my favorite restaurants in Charleston, Amen Street.

These huge crispy calamari pieces are topped with sweet corn, bacon, green onion, and a lemon aioli. It's the closest you can get to the real thing! You'll want this and this alone for dinner tonight!

For the calamari:

1 lb. fresh or thawed frozen calamari, cut into large strips

1 cup milk

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Vegetable or canola oil for deep-frying

1 cup rice flour or all-purpose flour

1⁄2 cup coarse yellow cornmeal or polenta

1 Tbs. paprika

1⁄8 tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste

Bacon, cooked and diced

Sweet cooked yellow corn

Green onion, chopped

For the sauce:

1/4 cup canola oil

1/4 cup olive oil

3 egg yolks

1 Tbs. Dijon mustard

3 garlic cloves

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground white pepper

3 to 4 Tbs. fresh Meyer lemon juice

To make the aioli, pour the canola oil and olive oil into a measuring cup with a spout. In a blender or food processor, combine the egg yolks, mustard, garlic, salt and white pepper. Pulse several times until the garlic is pulverized. With the motor running, add the oils in a slow, steady stream. Stir in 3 Tbs. of the lemon juice. Stir in the remaining 1 Tbs. lemon juice if needed to thin the aioli; it should be the consistency of mayonnaise. Spoon into a serving bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

In a bowl, combine the calamari, milk, and a pinch each of salt and black pepper. Cover and refrigerate for 1 to 4 hours.

Place an ovenproof platter in an oven and preheat to 150°F. In a heavy, deep fry pan or wide saucepan, pour in vegetable oil to a depth of 2 inches and heat to 375°F on a deep-frying thermometer.

Drain the calamari. In a large bowl, combine the rice flour, cornmeal, paprika, cayenne, 1 tsp. salt and 1⁄4 tsp. black pepper. Add half of the calamari and toss to coat evenly, then transfer the coated calamari to a colander and shake gently to remove excess flour.

Add the coated calamari to the hot oil and deep-fry, using a wire skimmer or slotted spoon to push it gently into the oil occasionally, until crisp and golden brown, about 1 minute. Using the skimmer or spoon, transfer to paper towels to drain briefly, then place on the platter in the oven. Coat the remaining calamari and fry in the same way.
Enjoy!


(Keywords: Appetizer, Charleston, South Carolina, Fiesta, Fried, Salad, Seafood, Southwest, Squid)