Salt and Pepper Squid and Potato, Bacon and Pea Soup

Yum, yum, yum and YUM!!!!

Finally I have conquered the dreaded squid! Determined to make successful Salt and Pepper Squid I went to the fish markets and bought whole fresh squid as I had heard the squid tubes are often from Asia and have been frozen so can be tough and chewy. I also bought an oil thermometer as it appears the oil needs to be between 180 and 190 degress Celsius for best results.

I used a Pete Evans recipe I found on the internet which used a mixture of dry roasted black peppercorns, Sichuan peppercorns, salt and dried chillies which were ground and mixed with tempura flour (found in Asian Supermarket).

I have to say I was rather nervous about preparing the squid but it was pretty easy except one ink sack did break making a nice mess! The squid pieces were lightly dusted in the flour mixture before being deep fried in batches for one minute only. They were served with lime wedges and coriander and left us all wanting more!

Rating 8-9 out of 10.

The Donna Hay Bacon, Potato and Pea Soup was really easy to make and full of flavour. Real comfort food which I will definitely make again.
Rating 8 out of 10.

Finally a big Happy Birthday to my 12 year old girl and thankyou for helping make the cupcakes!