Sautéed squid

with malaysian water spinach

This is a wonderfully simple but extremely flavoursome recipe. If you can’t buy the kang kong (water spinach), just use English or baby spinach. And don’t be put off by the smell of the shrimp paste - you do need to use the amount it says, but it mellows during the cooking and becomes quite an integral part of the dish.

You could also use cuttlefish, prawns, bugs, any firm white fish, salmon or trout

Ingredients:
4 garlic cloves
6 dried red chillies, soaked for 20 minutes in hot water, drained and chopped
4 macadamia nuts or candlenuts
5 red Asian shallots or French shallots
2 teaspoons dried shrimp paste (blachan)
300 g (101/2 oz) water spinach (‘kang kong’ from Asian grocers) or English spinach
4 tablespoons grapeseed oil
400 g (14 oz) squid tubes, cleaned and scored
1 teaspoon sugar
lime wedges, to serve

Pound the garlic, chillies, macadamia nuts, shallots and shrimp paste with a mortar and pestle until you have a paste. Cut the stems off the water spinach and save them.

Heat the oil in a wok until it is smoking. Add the paste and cook for 30 seconds, add the squid and cook for 20 seconds, then add the water spinach stems and cook for 1 minute. Season with sea salt and the sugar. Add the water spinach leaves and cook until wilted. Squeeze some fresh lime juice over the top and serve.

Serves 4

Recipe and cooking images from Fish by Pete Evans, published by Murdoch Books, photography by Alan Benson