There are so many food blogging events, but so little time. The small hand full of marvelous events that we already enjoy participating in has us scrambling till the very last wee hours of the night to submit our contribution. Procrastinating might be the evil force hiding behind our 2am post writings, but some minds work better under pressure. In our case, it’s two. But between two very busy jobs and continuous projects in the works, we blog when we can and that means late into the night. And by the way, make that a double cocktail at 1:23 am to alleviate any writers block!
Ironically, as much as we enjoy drinking and pairing our foods with wine, we’ve yet to participate in any event focused on wine. Luckily, there are some mighty fine folks out there in the blogosphere who are looking out for our inebriating interests. They are Denise and Lenny, the power couple behind the beautiful and delicious blog, Chez Us. They informed us of Wine Blogging Wednesday, a great event that has wine lovers finding a wine that is fits the theme for that month, then write about their tasting notes. This month’s theme has everyone reveling in old world Riesling, which is hosted by Tim over at Wine Cast. A monthly event like this that requires drinking wine is too good to pass up, so we’re joining in on the festivities and sharing our riesling notes on a German 2005 Veldenzer Elisenberg Spatlese by Weingut Max Ferd Richter.
Old World Riesling is an exciting theme for us this month because we were planning to pair this old world spatlese with some Vietnamese stuffed squid in spicy fish sauce. Todd has been craving this wickedly delicious, but rather time consuming, squid dish, which has been a staple and favorite on our Viet family-side for so many years. But the time in making our pork stuffed Vietnamese squid is worth every slimy, gut cleaning, ink-sac squirting effort. So we headed down the coast San Pedro’s various seafood vendors at the San Pedro Fish Market, searching for fresh, baby squid. A major port town in Los Angeles County, San Pedro is a busy shipping port and harbor that is a great source for fresh, local and international seafood. Here, fresh fish, crab, lobster are brought in daily and to our delight, there was plenty of fresh squid at our stuffing disposal.
This Spatlese was quite tasty! It had a moderate nose of green apple, peach, and a bit of honeysuckle forecasting what was about to be tasted. Upon drinking, those elements were confirmed, along with a moderate sweetness that is typically found in a Spatlese Riesling. The fruit was luscious with juicy peach now dominating the palate, but being complimented by the flora notes 1000 as well as the mildly tartness of the green apple characteristics. The wine was delicious on it’s own, but our main intent was to see how it would hold up to the challenging pair of this Viet Stuffed Squid and it’s palette dominating dipping sauce of Nuoc Cham. The Nouc Cham has a collage of salty, sour, spicy and sweet flavors, with the spicy being felt long and hard. With a fish sauce this spicy, it’s sometimes hard to find a wine that isn’t too harsh or clashing, or that just gets buried under the fish sauce’s power.
How did this Riesling do? When we eat the squid, we’ll wrap it in lettuce, fresh Viet herbs, then dip it in the Nuoc Cham. The mouth is left tingling and salivating for more. This Riesling married perfectly. The juicy fruit and sweetness of the wine drew out most all of the heat as well as rounding out the flavors. The fresh herbs were reflected back into the wine and more flora notes were discovered in the mouth. With the spice on the palate nearly extinguished by the wine, each bite and drink became nearly a virginal taste every time, with only subtle remembrances of the passing nibble lingering on the palate. As with any good pairing, both the wine and the food developed new qualities that were heightened in the dining experience.
As mentioned, these stuffed squids never fail to please, so we decided to share our ways of preparing and cooking these Vietnamese delicacies with a video! One of the challenges of cooking stuffed squid is to thoroughly cook the filling, without drying out the squid. We prepared the squid in two ways, grilling it on the pan and deep frying them with the a panko bread crust coating. For the pan method, we suggest covering the pan with a lid for a minute or two to help cook the filling without rubberizing the squid. Deep frying them with the outer layer of egg wash and panko bread crumbs keeps the squid moist during this quicky fry. Both are two great options for you to play with. Also, you don’t have to burn in hell like we did with all these chili’s, just add enough to fit your level of heat and spice!
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Vietnamese Stuffed Squid Recipe
One of the challenges of cooking stuffed squid is to thoroughly cook the filling, without drying out the squid. Overcooked, rubbery squid SUCKS!! We prepared the squid in two ways, grilling it on the pan and deep frying them with the a panko bread crust coating. For the pan method, we suggest covering the pan with a lid for a minute or two to help cook the filling without rubberizing the squid. Deep frying them with the outer layer of egg wash and panko bread crumbs keeps the squid moist during this quicky fry. Both are two great options for you to play with. Wrap these squids with some fresh Viet herbs, cool cucumber, lettuce and dip it all in a spicy (optional) fish dipping sauce!
Ingredients:
About 20 baby squid, cleaned & gutted
1/2 pound ground pork
2 cloves of crushed garlic
2 T finely minced shallots
1 T fish sauce or soy sauce
1 t freshly cracked black pepper
1 t sugar
Oil for pan fry or deep fry
1 Egg, beaten ( for Deep fry)
2 cups Panko Bread Crumbs ( for Deep Fry)
For more detailed steps on this recipe, watch our Vietnamese Stuffed Squid VIDEO
1. Clean squid by removing all innards and the cuttlebone (quill). Set on paper towels to remove excess water.
2. In separate bowl, combine pork, garlic, shallots, fish sauce, black pepper and sugar.
3. Keep the opening of the squid as wide as possible. Start by stuffing about 1 T of the pork stuffing inside body of squid. Fill to only about 1/2 to 3/4 full of the squid.
4. “Sew” a thread through the opening of the squid to hold it together. Using another toothpick, poke holes in the squid body to create “vent” holes during cooking.
Do not OVERSTUFF! The filling will expand during cooking and the squid will shrink as it cooks. You don’t want any squid explosions in your pan!
Pan Fry-
1.Heat about 2 T of oil in pan to low/medium heat. Place squid on hot pan and as squid starts to cook, slowly rotate the cook so that it cooks evenly on all sides. Cook for about 10-20 minutes, depending on how big your squid is and how much you stuffed it. Continue to poke more holes in squid with a tooth pick to release air and juices trapped inside the squid.
2.Make sure the filling is cooked thoroughly. If needed, place a lid on pan for about 1-2 minutes to help keep the steam in to fully cook the squid filling. Remove the lid for the last 5-7 minutes of the cooking process to create a more grilled exterior textures for the squid. Remove from pan and enjoy!
Panko Deep Fry-
1. Heat oil to medium heat for deep frying. In small bowl, mix egg. In separate bowl, add panko bread crumbs.
2. Dip squid in egg wash, then dredge in panko.
3. Gently drop in oil. Fry squid on both sides till filling is thoroughly cooked. . Continue to poke more holes in squid with a tooth pick to release air and juices trapped inside the squid. The squid will cook quickly, so be ready to pull it out of hot oil immediately . Blot on paper towel.
Serve these squids with some fresh Vietnamese herbs, cool cucumber, lettuce and dip it all in a spicy (optional) fish dipping sauce!
Video #8 – Watch Todd & Diane’s Vietnamese Stuffed Squid with Spicy dipping sauce.
Vietnamese Stuffed Squid & Spicy Dip – White On Rice Couple from White On Rice Couple on Vimeo
View all our VIDEOS Here 
Cooking & Exploring !
More appetizers that you might enjoy:
- Thomas Kellers Cornets
- Crispy, curry crusted tofu and basil fresh springrolls
- Salmon and sweet corn cakes
- Roasted klondike rose potatoes with herb goat cheese, thyme
- Vietnamese stuffed squid
- Asian nachos with pork and/or wonton chips/prawn crackers
- Parmesan poppy seed crackers
- Baked walla walla sweet onion dip
- Panko crusted shrimp lollipops
- Zucchini blossoms stuffed with pork
- Purple kohrabi chips
- Tofu frites, fries and mojo’s
- Vietnamese Spring Rolls – Pineapple and pork fresh springrolls
- Roasted nuts with parmesan, black pepper, sea salt
- Turkey and bacon fried springroll
- Vietnamese green mangoes and chili salt dip
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{ 41 comments… read them below or add one }
[looks at Lake Erie over retaining wall near house] Squid? Nope, ain’t gots none.
Todd & Diane, this is one of (if not) your best vid clip to date!
1) You’re so lucky to have fresh, local seafood at your disposal (especially that Cali squid).
2) Diane, thanks for cleaning squid. It’s easy, a little stinky but worth it.
3)What’s with the Viet Meets Vegas music…is he a Viet Wayne Newton? lol
4) Great tips on stuffing the squid (poking with holes)…I’ll try that!
i think i must be a little bit masochistic, because the more my mouth burns when i eat something, the better i think it is. that’s probably not normal, and i probably shouldn’t admit it in writing. oh well.
WE have been wondering how you two are – been a while since we have heard about “stuff”!
Love this video! Great job! I am going to have to try this one out, maybe for our bbq this weekend. I have been on the fence about the purchase of a meat grinder, but you may have sold us, Todd!! Just one more gadget for 20sq ft!
LPC- You ain’t got none squid…but you have a view of Lake Erie! You lucky ducky!
Peter- LOL! Thanks! We did not have much say in the music selection this time. Like the end credits said, my Mom wanted us to use these songs, which are her favorites! I must tell you, this song is a Vietnamese classic!
Grace- It’s OK. Join the club. We’ll all burn in chili hell together!!
Denise & Lenny- Go get the grinder! It’s shouldn’t take up too much of your 20 sq ft. kitchen !!
Sounds like a perfect pairing. Spicy foods like that deserve a good white wine to wash them down. Now I’m in the mood for Riesling. I should probably wait at least until after I drive carpool this afternoon to partake. Don’t want to get a rep as The Drunk Mom. As if my strolls out to the mailbox at 5pm with a glass of wine in hand don’t already have me pegged as that!
Oooh, yum yum! I haven’t had VNese squid in forever. Just picture me as one of your doggies, standing to the side with my tongue hanging out.
Hey guys! I know the perfect punishment when the little sous chefs get in trouble. I’m shipping them down to you and they can gut squid! Bwahahahahaha.
Andrea’s book is an absolute treasure! and squid is one of my all-time favourite seafoods, I can eat it any which way
Thanks for the notes on the wine.
I love squid!! Thanks for that video! I have a question for you guys…where did you get that that mortar and pestle?? It’s exactly what I am looking for! I wanted a nice big one and it looks like that’s what you guys have! Me jealous – again!!!
Love the look of that stuffed squid — will have to try it, if I can get someone to clean the squid for me. I’ve never liked doing it, for some reason….
These squid look awesome and your videos just keep getting better and better!!! I just bought some squid (already cleaned) from Santa Monica Seafood today, but definitely want to make a trip down to the San Pedro Fish Market. Thanks for the eating inspiration.
T&D – Your video was awesome. I really liked how you showed the mortar and pestle action for making nuoc cham! I even enjoyed the fobby Vietnamese tunes
Ah-i-ah-i-ah!
I love this dish – I was just thinking about it, actually. The San Pedro market is wonderful. You know, there’s this amazing little church nearby – Mary Star of the Sea. As I recall, it may not look all too impressive on the outside, but inside, they’ve got a few architectural treasures – like an all-marble altar and one of the most exquisite tabernacles I’ve seen in California. I didn’t go out to that part of LA county often, but when I did, I’d always stop there and I’d also make a quick detour to La Espanola Meats (in Harbor City) — they’ve got really good paella on Saturdays and the best selection of queso Manchego.
Yumm this looks great. Unfortunately we don’t have decent Vietnamese here in NYC, so I’ve taken to making it at home. Will definitely give this a go. I bet the spicy squid is amazing with the sweet Riesling!
Hi guys! Check out my latest post and see if you recognise anyone you know!
http://simplygluten-free.blogspot.com/2008/05/visit-with-white-on-rice-couple.html
xo,
carol
That was fantastic! Honestly, I really loved your video! It was fun, informative and very well done! I’m jealous. I wish I had someone to keep me company in the kitchen.
The only interest my husband has in food is eating it!
We have an Italian version of your squid dish. My mom uses a pork fillling with garlic and herbs. She fries it in olive oil and serves it with a spicy tomato sauce. Isn’t it funny that in as many ways as our cultures are different, they are also the same.
Great job!
ok, i gotta go the the market and buy those slimy bad boys this weekend
Diane, I would rather watch you than most of the stuff they show on the Food Network (er, RR, Robin Miller, etc.). Uhh… Okay, Todd can tag along, hahaha
Kidding! Great video! I was completely cracking up at the end. Cool music. I know you like to talk trash about your dogs (haha), but they are just so cute snapping up the stuffing!
(I hope you were not holding the camera up on the Thomas Bridge while on a motorcycle! Safety first!!)
I dunno why Westerners peel the squid, as we don’t do it here, but I’m starting to follow Western prep more (noooo!). The squid looks absolutely delicious! I think there’s a stuffing attachment for the KitchenAid too, but that might be too much of a production
You are so lucky to have all that great fresh fish just a few minutes away!
This is the second time in a week that fellow food bloggers have really impressed me with something unusual (unusual here in KC anyway.) It must be wonderful living so close to the ocean and having fresh seafood markets at your disposal. You’re very fortunate!
looks awesome. i’m bookmarking this recipe. in the next few weeks we’ll be doing a different type of stuffed squid, so we’ll link to this one as a great alternative! delicious.
haha and i thought u made all that food :p
personally i adore octopus over squid. Specially bbq’ed with some hot chilli oil sauce …
wine pairing can be really difficult. Personally i would know … dont drink alcohol , but have tried to educate myself none the less to make sure i always buy the rights stuff for my family n friends.
Your Review here is really nice.
Another awesome video you guys! I love how you use the squid tentacles as part of the stuffing. Have you two ever tried making sausage with your KitchenAid?
First of all, cool site. I can see how you were nominated for best design for the Bloggers’ Choice Awards. I’ll definitely be back to check out more of the articles and videos.
Secondly, thanks for the nice comment on my blog. Those kind of comments mean a lot. Glad you enjoyed yourself!
Terry
Thanks for such a great entry. Your photos and video are both excellent. I’m writing up the summary now and will post over the weekend.
Cheers,
–
Tim Elliott
Winecast
Oh yum! I love this recipe! And all of the detail you show in cleaning the squid! Thanks guys – that looks incredibly fab and so much fun. Puppies guest starred too
I can’t decide if I want to try the first batch or the panko batch… one of each?!? *love it* I am uber jealous of your fish market. xxoo
Squid. Can’t quite bring myself to eat it…saw 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea WAY too many times! But I loved the video!
Great video! Delicious looking food! You make every recipe seem so fun and easy to make.
Greetings,
Tiina
How did you know Riesling is my favorite of all the wines!
Oh wow – stuffed squid with Reisling – so when am I coming round to dinner
Three words. Gimme those squid.
OK, then, four.
Please.
This sounds simply fascinating. I’ve never had squid served like this…looks yummy!
My husband and I keep a database of all the different wines we’ve tried and what we thought of them. Then I paired it down to just the essentials for emailing out to our phones. Anytime, we find a bottle we want to try…we can remember what we bought. I’ll have to see if I can find this Riesling it sounds wonderful.
Natalie @ Gluten a Go Go
I’ve only ever had calamari, but squid with Reisling sounds great!
as usual my me and my 8month old daughter enjoyed watching your video!! love love it!! the vietnamese song too was nice for that asian ambiance!! a real delicious treat guys!!
Sounds like you had as much fun with your German Riesling as I did on this Wine Blogging Wednesday!
Oh I saw these the other day and absolutely loved the idea! As soon as I can get up to the world market in Albuquerque (about 90 miles north of me) I plan to pick up some squid and do this! I’ve even raved to a few of the people down here about this squid stuffing you shared! thanks!
Recipe Girl- Hah! You’re the type of mom that we like!
WC- But we’ll feed you the squid! The pups don’t get any!
ECM- Send em down! We’ll give em the squid boot camp!
Cynthia- Andrea’s book really is great! Glad to know you love squid!
Lisa- We’ll look into seeing how you can get one of those mortar & pedstles!
Lydia- Hey, we’ll clean your squid for ya anytime!
Julie- Santa Monica Seafood has good stuff too. Have fun in San Pedro!
Christine- I told Mom that you liked her fobby music! She wants to adopt you!
Marc- Too bad about NYC. Come down to Southern Cali and we’ll make it for ya!
Simply gluten- Thanks for the great write up! We loved meeting you too!
Susan- Well, at least your husband eats your cooking! He’s done his part.
Rita- Have fun with the squid!
Manggy- Yes! Let’s all promote the idea of keeping the skin on the squid!
Madame Chow- Thanks! The squid really is plentiful here.
Sandie- What KC is lacking, we’ll make up to you when you head down our way!
We are Never full- Can’t wait to see what great squid dish you guys create!
Kate- Octopus is great too! We’ll be making that again in a few weeks!
Marvin- We have that sausage attachment and are working on a sausage recipe now. Look out for that video!
Terry- Thanks for visiting! You are tooooo awesome and talented with your bent objects! We are addicted to your genius creations!
Tim- Thanks for a great theme for these WBW event!
Jen- You got the mountains, we got the seafood. There! We’re even!
Nan- You meanie weanie tofu and squid hater!
Tiina- Thanks for watching our videos!
Lori- Yeah for Rieslings!
CakeLaw- You are always welcome to dinner, but the airfare might be a little pricey!
Fokful- You can have a dozen of these!
Sheltie Girl- We do the same thing with wine! Having a data base is crucial cause there are so many great wines out there.
Rebecca- Calamari is good too! Just don’t slice it into rings and stuff it instead!
dhanngit- Glad to know that your daughter is watching too!
Dale- Thanks for visiting! Love your Riesling rec too!
Lance- Gosh, 90 miles? But hope you do get it! Have fun!
please please please i want the stuffed squid recipe!
it looks WONDERFUL and i’ve been wanting to make this for some time…
Claudia- Yes, we’re just writing it up, and slacking at it. Give us a day and It’ll be up!
Oh Claudia one more thing….We’re so glad to know that you like stuffed squid! Yeah!!!!!!!!
You two are ADORABLE! Watching your videos is always so much fun and then, the inevitable happens…I’m suddenly RAVENOUS for Vietnamese food.
Thanks for the great cooking lesson!