A tender and savory seafood pasta dish that is equally satisfying and flavorful with its rich umami flavor paired with a light tomato white wine sauce. Squid Ink Pasta with Calamari, simmered for 30 minutes, for a tender seafood dish with a kick.
There's nothing quite as delicious as a seafood pasta! Try our Linguine with Clams or Linguine with Red Clam Sauce!
A Quick Look at The Recipe
- ✅Recipe Name: Pasta with Calamari
- ⏲️Ready in: 1 hour
- 👪Makes: 4 servings of pasta
- 📋Main ingredients: Calamari, chiles, white wine, passata, and squid ink pasta.
- ⭐Why You'll Love This Recipe: Pasta with calamari is a delicious seafood dish with tender, simmered calamari tossed with a savory squid ink pasta, perfect for Christmas Eve.
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Best Way to Cook Calamari
Calamari is super easy to cook, but there are only two ways to make it: hot and fast or low and slow.
Frying calamari quickly, like in fried calamari, is perfect. Frying it for under a minute will give you tender fried calamari. But for dishes like pasta with calamari or Stuffed Calamari, you want to go low and slow to get the most tender seafood that doesn't have a chewy texture.
Calamari can be an intimidating seafood, but it's a lot easier to cook once you understand the sweet spots. Fry for 30-90 seconds or simmer for over 30 minutes to get it to its most tender texture.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Calamari. Squid is a delicious seafood, but only when cooked perfectly. Shrimp can be substituted.
- White wine. I use a bright sauvignon blanc for most pasta dishes, but pinot grigio is a good substitute.
- Squid ink pasta. I love the savory and umami flavor in squid ink pasta, but you can substitute regular linguine or spaghetti.
- Passata. Passata is perfect because it is a strained tomato puree and makes a really smooth pasta sauce. Substitute tomato puree or crushed tomatoes.
- Anchovies. Anchovies add more natural salt and savoriness to the dish. They can be left out, and salt can be adjusted as needed. Anchovies add extra flavor to dishes like Garlic Anchovy Pasta with Toasted Breadcrumbs.
- Red Chile Pepper. I like the fresh flavor of a red chile pepper. Calabrian chili peppers or crushed red peppers can work as a substitute.
*Please see the recipe card below for more information on the ingredients.
How to Make Squid Ink Pasta with Calamari
Step 1: Slice the tentacles of the squid in half and the tubes into ½ inch circles.
Step 2: Place a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Once hot, add extra virgin olive oil. Add the garlic, chile pepper, and anchovies. Sauté for 2-3 minutes until the garlic starts to brown.
Step 3: Then stir in the calamari and saute until they become opaque, about a minute.
Step 4: Pour in the white wine and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 minutes or until the wine begins to reduce.
Step 5: Add in the passata, salt, and pepper. Stir well and simmer low for 40 minutes.
Step 6: When the sauce is almost finished, start boiling a large pot of water. Salt the water and add the pasta. Boil the pasta until al dente, and then once the sauce has simmered for 40 minutes, transfer the pasta to the sauce. Add a ladleful of pasta water. Simmer the pasta and the sauce for a minute or two to let the sauce coat the pasta
Serve pasta with calamari immediately with a loaf of Italian bread. This dish is a perfect pasta dish to serve on Christmas Eve before you bring out the Lemon Garlic Broiled Flounder, Pan-Seared Vermillion Snapper, or Lemon Pistachio Crusted Snapper!
Pro-Tips
- Cook at a low heat. It's best to go low and slow with this dish, slowly sauteing the garlic and chiles, then simmering the calamari over low heat for a tender and delicious calamari.
- Frozen calamari is best because freezing it helps tenderize the muscles.
- Finish cooking the pasta in the sauce to let it absorb some of the sauce and thicken the sauce.
- No cheese on seafood pastas, but you can try serving it with toasted breadcrumbs for a delicious topping.
Recipe FAQs
Whole Foods usually carries it in the frozen section, as well as some other supermarkets. You can find it in asian supermarkets and seafood markets as well.
It's really unnecessary, and freezing the squid will actually make the dish more tender anyway. Freezing it will break down some of the tough muscle tissue in the squid.
Absolutely not.
More Delicious Seafood Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Squid Ink Pasta with Calamari
Equipment
- 1 large saucepan
- 1 large pot
Ingredients
- ½ lb squid ink pasta
- 12 oz Frozen calamari, tentacles and tubes
- 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 4 anchovies
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 hot chile pepper
- ⅓ cup white wine
- 24 oz passata
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoon Fresh Parsley Chopped
Instructions
- Slice the tentacles of the squid in half and the tubes into ½ inch circles.
- Place a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Once hot, add extra virgin olive oil. Add the garlic, chile pepper, and anchovies. Saute for 2-3 minutes until the garlic starts to brown. Then stir in the calamari and saute until they become opaque, about a minute.
- Pour in the white wine and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 minutes or until the wine begins to reduce. Add in the passata, salt, and pepper. Stir well and simmer low for 40 minutes.
- When the sauce is almost finished, start boiling a large pot of water. Salt the water and add the pasta. Boil the pasta until al dente, and then once the sauce has simmered for 40 minutes, transfer the pasta to the sauce. Add a ladleful of pasta water. Simmer the pasta and the sauce for a minute or two to let the sauce coat the pasta.
- Serve the pasta immediately with a loaf of Italian bread.
Vincent DelGiudice says
An absolute favorite pasta of mine! It has the most tender and flavorful calamari! Leave a review if you try it!