Portuguese Calamari Salad Recipe

My friends and I took a 4-day trip to Faro, Portugal, and spent a day at Deserta Island. It’s a gorgeous island with 11 km of white sand and a pretty deserted beach in October. There’s only one restaurant on the island which makes the meal rather pricey, but so worth it for the fresh seafood and incredible views.

We ordered octopus salad and it was a really simple dish – boiled octopus slices with tomatoes, onions, flat leaf parsley, olive oil and lemon juice. That was it! But it was oh so delicious because of the freshness of the octopus and the sweetness of the tomatoes.

In trying to duplicate the dish, I substituted octopus for calamari and honestly, it works just as well. The dish transported me back to Deserta island with the sea breeze, the call of seagulls and the company of great friends.

Portuguese Calamari Salad

Ingredients:

2 calamari, cleaned, skinned, gutted and sliced into rings

1 large tomato, cut into small pieces

1 red onion, sliced thinly

¼ cup cilantro or flat leaf parsley, chopped

Dressing

1/3 cup olive oil

½ lemon, juiced

½ Tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

Add calamari slices into boiling water for 60 seconds. Remove calamari and place in a bowl with ice to stop it from cooking any further.

Place all the ingredients in a medium bowl and pour the dressing over them. Mix thoroughly, cover with saren wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour for the flavors to intensify.