Stuffed squid are the seafood version of sarmi: tender meat filled with rice, tomatoes and dill, baked in its own sauce. The dish feels festive but not heavy, and fresh or frozen squid is sold in every shop in Burgas. Most of the work comes at the start, then the oven does the rest, so it suits a slow Sunday lunch.

1 h 35 minprep 40 min · cooking 55 min
4 servingsLunch
Mediumdifficulty
430 kcalper serving

Ingredients

For the squid and filling

  • 8medium squid (about 900 g, with tentacles)
  • 1 (150 g)onion
  • 2 clovesgarlic
  • 120 glong-grain rice
  • 2 (250 g)ripe tomatoes
  • 1 tbsptomato purée
  • 1 bunch (30 g)fresh dill
  • 3 tbspolive oil
  • 100 mlwater
  • 1 tspsalt
  • ½ tspblack pepper

For the sauce

  • 400 g (1 can)diced tomatoes
  • 1 tbspolive oil
  • 150 mlwater
  • ½ tspsalt
  • ½lemon

Method

  1. Clean the squid

    If the squid is frozen, thaw it in the fridge for 8 hours or in cold water for 1 hour. Pull the head and tentacles out of the body, remove the clear quill and rinse the inside. Cut the tentacles off below the eyes and chop them finely. Leave the bodies whole.

    stuffed squid — Clean the squid

  2. Soften the onion

    Heat 3 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Cook the finely chopped onion for 5 minutes, until clear. Add the garlic and chopped tentacles and stir for 2 minutes, until the tentacles turn white.

    stuffed squid — Soften the onion

  3. Cook the filling

    Add the rice and stir for 1 minute. Add the finely chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, 100 ml of water, 1 tsp of salt and the pepper. Simmer for 6–7 minutes, until the liquid has almost gone and the rice is still firm in the middle. Take the pan off the heat and stir in half of the finely chopped dill.

    Let the filling cool for 5 minutes so you can stuff the squid by hand.

    stuffed squid — Cook the filling

  4. Stuff the squid

    Spoon the filling into the bodies until they are two-thirds full, because the rice swells as it bakes. Close the opening of each squid with a toothpick.

    stuffed squid — Stuff the squid

  5. Prepare the baking dish

    Heat the oven to 180°C. In a deep baking dish, mix the diced tomatoes, 150 ml of water, 1 tbsp of olive oil and ½ tsp of salt. Lay the squid in a single layer, spoon a little of the sauce over them and cover tightly with foil.

    stuffed squid — Prepare the baking dish

  6. Bake under foil

    Bake for 40 minutes at 180°C. Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes, until the sauce thickens and the edges of the squid darken. The squid is done when a fork slides into the body with no resistance.

    stuffed squid — Bake under foil

  7. Let it rest

    Leave the dish out of the oven for 10 minutes so the sauce settles. Remove the toothpicks, sprinkle with the rest of the dill and squeeze over the juice of half a lemon.

    Slice the squid into rounds about 2 cm thick, so the filling shows.

    stuffed squid — Let it rest

How to serve it

Serve with a green salad of lettuce and cucumber, dressed only with olive oil and salt, and a slice of crusty bread for the sauce.

Good to know

Squid stuffed with rice is made all around the Mediterranean, in Greek, Italian and Spanish cooking.

Per serving (approx.): 430 kcal · protein 33 g · fat 17 g · carbohydrates 36 g