Chipirones Afogaos

Asturias is crazy for seafood. If you can haul it out of the sea, Asturians eat it. Everything from giant ocean fish from thousands of miles away to tiny barnacles on the rocks of the local beaches goes into Asturian cuisine.

Chipirones

Chipirón is ‘baby squid’ in Castellano. The word is notable in that there is not an Asturian term separate from the Castilian one. Whereas most seafood in Asturias has its own name (or three), this one is the same word as in Castellano.

Most Americans probably have no contact with squid of any sort outside of the fried calamari appetizers briefly popular in the 1990s. Buy frozen baby squid, pre-cleaned if possible. If you cannot find cleaned baby squid, you can do it yourself surprisingly easily.

1. Grasp the squid tail in one hand and the head in the other. Firmly pull apart with a slight twisting motion. The head and innards should easily slip out of the body.
2. The squid head and innards have now been removed from the squid body tube. The tentacles and body tube are edible, while the head behind the tentacles and the innards should be discarded.
3. If you plan on eating the squid tentacles, you must remove the beak. The squid beak is a bony piece of inedible cartilage that is located at the base of the tentacles where they connect to the head of the squid. Once the tentacles are cut from the head, squeeze the connective tissue at the top and the beak will easily come out.
4. Once the head and tentacles are removed from the squid, the tail section remains. The tail tube portion contains a thin, clear sliver of cartilage. This cartilage is also known as the cuttle or cuttlebone, hence its family name of cuttlefish. The cartilage almost looks like a super-thin shard of glass—it is inedible and must be removed. Simply grasp the cartilage with your fingers and pull it from the squid body tube. It should release fairly easily.
5. Although the dark, spotty skin of the squid is edible, most cooks choose to remove it for a more appealing presentation. The skin will easily separate from the flesh to be peeled away. Once you have the skin removed, thoroughly wash the inside of the squid body tube, using your finger to pull out any residual innards. Pat dry before proceeding.

Afogaos

Afogaos is an Asturian word that translates into ahogados in Castellano and drowned in English. It is a somewhat common word in Asturian gastronomy for things stewed for a very long time at very low temperatures. Almost always this is done in a pot with a tight fitting lid, and abundant onion is used. As a cooking technique, it is pretty much identical to braising.

Ingredients

• 1 kg baby squid.
• 300 g white onion, chopped.
• 3 cloves, garlic, diced.
• 1 Italian green pepper, or green bell pepper, diced.
• 1 cayenne pepper, or other red pepper according to taste, diced.
• 200 ml still cider.
• 100 ml olive oil.
• 1 bay leaf.

Instructions

1. Clean your squid. See above for tips on doing this.
2. Cut the onion, green pepper into small pieces and sliced ​​garlic and fry them all in the oil for 15 minutes over low heat. Add your cayenne and bay leaf.
3. Add your cider all at once and let it reduce by half. Approximately 5 minutes.
4. Add the sliced squid, bring it back up to a simmer, covert, and let simmer for 25-30 minutes.

Notes

• Serve this in small individual dishes. Terracotta rounds with shallow sides are traditional. Provide lots of fresh crusty bread for mopping up the delicious broth.