Recipe: Calamari Stew

Note: A chef’s secret from Saverio Posarelli of Gladstone’s for Fish, this stew was beloved by everybody on the Food staff. Almost all of us have made variations of it at home--it works well with chicken breast substituted for the squid, you can easily omit the chiles if you don’t like spicy food, and if you don’t feel like cooking polenta, the stew is every bit as good served over rice.

1/2 cup olive oil

1 large red onion, chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

5 small chiles, minced

1 cup dry red wine

6 to 8 Roma tomatoes, peeled and chopped

2 pounds spinach, stemmed

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt, pepper

1 1/2 pounds squid, cleaned and cut into rings

Polenta or cooked rice, optional

Heat olive oil in large saucepan. Add red onion, carrot and celery. Cook until vegetables are golden. Add chiles, red wine and tomatoes. Bring to simmer. Cover and cook over medium heat 5 minutes.

Add spinach, garlic and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and cook over medium heat 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Add squid and cook 1 minute or until squid turns opaque. Serve as stew over Polenta or rice. Makes 6 servings.

Polenta

2 cups cold water

Coarse salt

1 cup coarse yellow cornmeal

1 tablespoon olive oil

Heat water to boiling. Add salt to taste. Gradually add cornmeal in stream, stirring constantly with wooden spoon. Add olive oil. Continue to cook, stirring, 15 minutes or until mixture thickens. Makes 2 cups.

Each serving contains about: 450 calories; 347 mg sodium; 264 mg cholesterol; 23 grams fat; 33 grams carbohydrates; 22 grams protein; 1.32 grams fiber; 47% calories from fat.