Looking for squid recipes? Want the best calamari? Try our ideas here, then try our easy starter ideas as well as comforting family meals and showstopping BBQ recipes.

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When is squid in season?

Squid season starts in July and ends in December. Squid is at its best between August and September.


Easy squid recipes

Salt and pepper squid

The co-owners of seafood restaurant Prawn on the Lawn share this gently spiced salt and pepper squid dish, a fail-safe starter to serve at any dinner party.

A frying pan filled with fried squid, red chillies and topped with green spring onions, set against a pale blue background

Squid stew

Tender squid is paired with creamy butter beans in this slow-cooked stew, best served with crunchy bread to make a hearty one-pot dinner. This recipe is from the co-owners of seafood restaurant Prawn on the Lawn.

A blue plate topped with golden crispy rings of squid

Squid risotto

Squid is put to great use in this risotto recipe. With a little bit of know-how (and some soothing, meditative stirring), a creamy, umami-rich risotto with perfectly cooked rice is guaranteed.

More like this
Seafood risotto in a bowl with spoon

Herb and chilli calamari

Liven up crisp, golden squid rings with coriander, peanuts and chilli for an easy seafood starter.

Calamari Recipe For Squid Rings

Cacciucco (Tuscan fish stew)

Cacciucco is a fish stew from Livorno, a port on the coast of Tuscany, and it should contain five types of seafood. This recipe comes from Caldesi in Campagna, an Italian restaurant in Bray.

Cacciucco (Tuscan fish stew)

Spanish rice-stuffed squid

Check out our recipe for squid stuffed with Spanish rice. Impress guests with this easy yet low-calorie seafood dish, ready in an hour.

Stuffed Squid Recipe with Spanish Rice

Squid ink pasta

A modern Italian pasta dish from London's Bibo restaurant. It's a new idea for squid and is sure to impress your friends.

A white bowl filled with tagliarini nero, squid, chilli, tomato and garlic

Pachamama’s squid skewers

Anticuchos are meat skewers eaten as a starter or snack in Peru. Peruvian restaurant Pachamama uses squid marinated in turmeric for a contemporary twist. A stylish dinner party starter.

pachamama’s squid anticuchos

Salt and pepper squid

You've probably enjoyed this delicious fried squid dish in a restaurant, but actually it's easy to prepare at home too.

Salt and pepper squid

Buttermilk-fried squid and kimchi tacos

This is a new way with squid, fried in crunchy breadcrumbs and served with lots of Korean spices and kimchi, the traditional fermented vegetable side dish. Makes the best show-off dinner-party starter.

Taco Recipe with fried squid rings and kimchi on a black rectangular plate

BBQ squid with charred lemon and caper dressing

This recipe for barbecued squid is quick and easy to make, but tastes delicious and looks really impressive – perfect for entertaining. The simple charred lemon and caper dressing works really well with the fresh squid.

Barbecued squid with charred lemon and caper dressing

Charred squid, tomatoes, ’nduja and basil

This recipe for charred squid, tomatoes, 'nduja and basil comes from Bernardi's in London. It makes a great starter but you can add potatoes to make it a main.

Charred squid with tomatoes

Seafood fry with miso butter, yuzu hollandaise and kimchi mayo

This recipe, starring squid alongside salmon and prawns, is all about the condiments: miso butter, yuzu hollandaise and kimchi mayo. Take your pick.

Miso Butter and Seafood

Fraq’s Lobster Shack’s calamari club

Fraq’s is the whitewashed Maine-inspired shack off Tottenham Court Road. It serves three rolls (including lobster, and hot prawn and avocado), but its flavour-packed calamari in a soft bun, for our money, trounces its more expensive cousins.

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Fraq’s Lobster Shack’s calamari club

Spicy squid with Japanese BBQ sauce

Our recipe for spicy squid is a great new way to cook with this seafood staple. It makes a great quick and easy starter for two.

Spicy squid with Japanese BBQ sauce

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