This type of pasta is flavored with squid or cuttlefish ink, thus the dark color. I personally think squid ink pasta is an acquired taste. Not everyone can appreciate the “fishy” flavor, while some get turned off by the way it looks. As they say, do not judge a book by its cover- you would not want to miss out on this delectable dish.

Ingredients:

1 kilo fresh squid, uncleaned

½ kilo spaghetti noodles

1/3 cup (80 ml) dry white wine

1big tomato, cored and sliced

A small bunch parsley, minced

1 onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, cored and cubed

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup olive oil

Salt

Peppercorns

Boil 3 quarts of water with salt and oil. Add the pasta and cook for a few minutes. Stir occasionally. Make sure that you follow package instructions. It usually takes 5-8 minutes for it to become al dente. Once it is cooked, drain the pasta and give it a cold bath by rinsing it with cold water. Set aside.

Clean the squid carefully. Separate the heads with the tentacles slowly to avoid breaking the ink sacs. Remove the transparent bone. Rinse the squid well with cold water and cut into rings. Chop the tentacles.

In a bowl, open the ink sacs to collect the ink.  Set aside

In a deep pan, heat the oil and fry the garlic and onion. Add the tomato and bell pepper, cook for 5 minutes or until they are soft. Then, stir-fry the squid and the parsley for 2 minutes. Pour in the white wine and cook for another 5 minutes or until you have reduced the wine in half. Make sure that the squid is tender, do not overcook. Squid or cuttlefish most especially have a tendency to be chewy. Add the squid ink and let it simmer for another 5 minutes.

Combine the pasta and the squid ink sauce. Serve on a plate and top with squid, garnish with parsley. It is best eaten with white wine.

Photo Courtesy Of: missmeng