1.
Squid are cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species. Like all other cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, a mantle, and arms. Squid, like cuttlefish, have eight arms arranged in pairs and two, usually longer, tentacles. Squid are strong swimmers and certain species can ‘fly’ for short distances out of the water.
Admittedly, I didn’t know this, but in the age of the internet, it’s remarkably easy to find this stuff out.
2.
If you haven’t read Kraken, in which a giant squid is stolen and the end of the world begins, you really should. It currently wages war with The City and the City as my favourite China Meiville novel.
3.
I tried cooking with squid once. It didn’t go well.
4.
“In her old firm they called her The Squid.”
“The Squid?”
“The only thing that can kill a shark.”
Parker Posey’s run on Boston Legal was far too short.
Although that can be said of Parker Posey’s run on pretty much everything.
5.
Teuthida is a name I’m likely to steal for a D&D bad guy, one of these days.
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3 Responses
Cooking with Squids:
Maybe they're not so hot with recipes.
Cooking with squid is easy. The trick is getting all the fucking membranes off first.
Nobody ever tells you that, unless you get friendly with someone who runs a really good kitchen. So: you get a really fucking sharp knife, and you scrape it across the squid parts, and pretty soon you'll find there's a very thin, very very tough membrane coming loose. Peel it all off. Repeat for the inside of the squid.
You may now cut and cook the squid as you please. Don't overcook it, though: quick and hot is the way to go. But as long as you get rid of those goddam membranes, you won't get the dreaded Rubber Ring effect.
You, sir, are a font of useful culinary knowledge. Sadly, overcooking things is my default approach at the moment, so it may take a considerably amount of experimentation to implement this…