Korean Grilled Squid. Squid itself is a popular ingredient in Korean cuisine. You can find it as a banchan, main dish, or even on-a-stick.
Outside of Korea, I rarely see it served as something other than deep-fried calamari. So today, I wanted to show you how to pan-fry it and eat it with a delicious tangy gochujang sauce. The sauce is spicy so you will need to it with a bowl of hot rice.
In this video, I also include a short walk-thru on how to clean fresh squid. Cleaning seafood may feel "icky" at first, but it may help you develop a deeper appreciation for the animal. The trickiest part will be separating the tentacles from the tube. You need to pull down with some force. And don't worry if you rip the inner sac and it gets messy. A quick rinse under water... will make it look pretty again. Alrighty, you guys ready to cook Korean grilled squid?
Korean Grilled Squid
Ingredients
- Squid - 1 whole
- Chives - garnish
- Sesame seeds - garnish
Gochujang Sauce
- Korean red chili paste gochujang - 2 Tablespoon
- Korean red chili flakes gochugaru - 2 Tablespoons
- Minced garlic - 1 Tablespoon
- Soy sauce - 1 Tablespoon
- Mirin - 1 Tablespoon
- Honey - 2 Tablespoon
- Sesame oil - 1 Tablespoon
Instructions
Clean Squid
- Separate the tentacles from the tube (reference video below). Then make a cut and throw away the guts that are attached to the tentacles. Put your fingers into the tube and find the 'plastic spine' - pull it out and throw it away. Make a cut just below the eyes of the squid. Throw out that section. Then flip the tentacles up-side down and pop-out the squid beak. Trim the ends off of each tentacle. Then use your fingers and slide it across each tentacles - remove the suction covers. Thoroughly wash both the tentacles and tube. Then place the squid right-side up (fins on top) and turn it ~90 degrees down (reference video). Make cuts along the squid. Set aside.
Make Gochujang Sauce
- Mix all of the listed ingredients under 'Gochujang Sauce'. (Note: this will be enough sauce to cover 2 whole squid)
Pan-fry Squid
- Put a large frying pan on medium-high heat. Pour in some oil. Once the pan is hot, place the squid in (cut-side facing up). Let it cook a few minutes until it starts to turn a red/purple color. Then flip it over. The squid will immediately curl. No worries. Just take two utensils and hold it down flat for ~30 seconds. It should straighten out. Cook until the side is fully cooked thru - with a nice red/purple color. Then turn the heat down to a low. Baste one side with the gochujang sauce. Then flip-it over and baste the other side. Turn off the heat. Plate and garnish it with chives and sesame seeds.
Notes
- Cook the squid about 90% through before basting
- Make sure to reduce the heat to a low before basting - sauce will burn quickly
- Reference video for further details
Brandon says
This recipe is great and thank you for not making us scroll past a life story to get there!
YS Lock says
Look easy to cook. Not sure till I try dishing it out. Your dish is yum yum
Steph says
Hi, just made the dish today. Not too sure why the squid gave out so much water when I placed it on the pan to fry. Yours was so dry. Do you have to leave it to drip dry for some time first? By the way, the sauce is awesome. Thank you for sharing.
Jane Chen says
Excellent recipe for a quick homemade grilled squid.
Dan-yul says
Glad you digged it Jane!