Fresh Squid, its all good!

I recently had the opportunity to cook a large quantity of fresh Squid over a previous weekend.On the first day I decided to quickly grill the squid and then toss it in a simple lemon vinaigrette with ripe tomatoes and shaved fennel. This little dish would serve as a first course for the grill Swordfish we were having. When working with Squid I prefer to use fresh instead of frozen if possible. Here in the bay area most of our fresh squid comes locally from the Monterey bay, there seems to be a never ending supply of these little tasty guys. Step one after you have bought fresh squid is to clean and prepare them for cooking. Frozen squid will almost always be pre cleaned. To clean them have a cutting board, sharp knife and a bowl set in another bowl of ice to keep them cold while you work. Lay the squid out in front of you and make a cut just in front of the eyes to remove the tentacle's in one piece. Next hold the end tip of the tube down with your finger while using the back of the knife to scrap out the interior of the body, the long tube will have a purplish skin and little wings on the tip which can be easily scraped off if desired. At this point the tubes can be cut into rings, but its much easier to grill when they are left whole. A quick rinse under cold water and they are ready for your recipe.

Grilled Calamari salad
Ingredients:
2 pounds fresh cleaned squid
2 Roma tomatoes,rough chop
1 fennel bulb, diced
2 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1/2 bunch flat leaf parsley, rough chop
juice of 1 lime
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt/fresh pepper

Method:
1. Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for cooking.
2. When its hot and clean, place pre oiled and seasoned squid tubes and tentacles on grill.
3. Turn over once or twice till done, which depending on hot the grill is only a few minutes, its very important that squid is not overcooked or it will become very tough and rubbery.
4. Cut the tubes into rings and place in a bowl with the rest of the ingredients, Check seasonings.

Note: Serve at room temperture on a platter or chilled in martini glasses.