Exotic Squid Stir-fried with Luffa: Deliciously Fragrant and Sweetly Crisp
Squid stir-fried with luffa is one of the delicious stir-fry dishes, offering an appealing flavor. The sweet and crispy squid combined with the gentle flavor of luffa is quite exotic and appetizing.
Ingredients
- 350g fresh squid
- 500g luffa
- 150g bean sprouts
- 1-2 dried onions, 3 garlic cloves, 1 small piece of ginger
- Green onions
- Spices: seasoning powder, MSG, ground pepper, fish sauce
Ingredient Notes
To make a delicious squid stir-fried with luffa, you need to choose fresh and firm squid, whose body and head are not falling apart, and do not have a foul smell. In addition, when choosing luffa, opt for young ones, as the mature ones, despite being sweet, can be tough and fibrous.
Instructions
Preparation of Squid
Separately remove the squid head, squeeze out the ink sac, slime, eyes, and beak. Then, pull out the squid's backbone and peel off the silky outer layer of the squid. The squid eyes and this silky layer are the cause of the color when stir-frying squid.
Use salt grains and ginger wine (or vodka + crushed fresh ginger) to rub the squid, for cleaning and removing the fishy smell. Then rinse it off and drain the water.
After draining, cut the squid into bite-sized pieces. Divide the squid head into two and shorten the tentacles. The two squid fins can be left intact. Cut the squid body as desired.
Reference: How to cut squid for stir-frying
Marinate the cut squid with:
- 1 teaspoon of seasoning powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground pepper
Mix well and let the squid marinate for 5-10 minutes.
Preparation of Other Ingredients
Peel the oriental pickling melon, remove the top and bottom ends, wash thoroughly and cut into diagonal slices about 2cm thick.
Chop the onions, garlic, and ginger.
Wash the green onions, cut into 2-3cm pieces.
Soak the bean sprouts in salt water, rinse thoroughly, and drain.
Making Stir-fried Squid with Oriental Pickling Melon
First, sauté half of the chopped onions, garlic, and ginger with a little cooking oil, then add the squid. Stir-fry the squid at high heat until it turns opaque, then turn off the heat and set the squid aside.
Next, sauté the remaining chopped onions, garlic, and ginger with 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. Add the oriental pickling melon and stir-fry. Stir until the melon is evenly coated with oil, then add the squid cooking liquid to let it absorb into the melon. Then season with seasoning powder or broth mix, and a little MSG to taste.
Stir-fry the melon at high heat until it's cooked and becomes more translucent (estimated stir-frying time is about 2 minutes), then add the partially cooked squid and bean sprouts. Add more fish sauce to taste.
Stir quickly for another 20-30 seconds, then add the green onions. Stir and turn off the heat. If you prefer the melon to be more cooked and softer, you can stir-fry a little longer.
The stir-fried squid with oriental pickling melon is very fragrant. The fresh sweetness of the melon almost overpowers the squid's fishiness. Properly stir-fried squid retains its tender sweetness, not dry or rubbery, while the melon is perfectly cooked, vibrant green. This is a delicious squid stir-fry dish that you shouldn't miss, alongside other tantalizing dishes like squid stir-fried with cauliflower, squid stir-fried with onions, mixed squid stir-fry...
