How to Clean and Prep Squid
Doryteuthis opalescens, commonly known as market squid, is a scrappy bantamweight fighter in the mixed martial arts arena of the sea. Adults of the species pass the time in deeper offshore waters by day, ascending to shallower zones by night to hunt. They feed on whatever they can wrap their tentacular clubs around: fish, crabs, shrimp, mollusks, and even other market squid! In turn, sea lions, sharks, tuna, and salmon all enjoy eating them, and now you can too, though we suggest you take a little time and prepare them artfully rather than guzzling them raw.
To that end, first you’ll need to clean your squid. Check out these handy step by step instructions with photos. Get your cutting board ready and prepare for a fun and educational mess!
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Remove “the cape.” These are the two flaps near the end of the tube; gently pinch them together with your fingers, then pull them off the end of the tube and discard.
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Separate the head and tentacles from the body (which we just referred to as the tube, but is also occasionally called the mantle – though “mantle” technically includes the cape as well). Anyway! Grip the body of the squid with one hand. Grip the head, right below the eyes, with the other. Gently pull the head and tentacles from the body (you might need to twist a bit to free them without ripping). The guts should come out attached to the head; if they don’t, press the tube and squeeze the guts through the opening (just like you’re flattening a tube of toothpaste).
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Extract the quill. This is a long, clear piece of chitin – the same substance that makes up shrimp shells and cricket exoskeletons – and it serves like a backbone in squid. You’ll find it inside the tube. Grasp the end of the quill, pull it out gently, pause for a moment to admire nature’s astounding engineering abilities, and discard.
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Remove the skin from the body tube by rubbing your fingers along it. On small squid with delicate skin, like these, this should be fairly easy – but if they ever happen to be large or the skin is too slippery, use a paper towel to get a better grip. The skin should come off in a thin, cellophane-like layer; discard it.
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Free the tentacles! Feel around with your fingertips to find the hard, round “beak” (a cartilaginous blob) that’s located between the eyes and the tentacles. Slice just below it to separate the tentacles (which you’re going to cook) from the head and guts (which you’re going to throw away). Check the base of the tentacles by squeezing to make sure that no sliver of beak remains.
Voila! Your squid are clean. Now, it’s time to cook…