Grilled Squid Skewers

5 from 1 vote

Delicious char-grilled squid skewers with vegetables and grilled potatoes on the sides. Drizzled with Greek olive oil and lemon dressing + oregano. So yummy!

Prep Time30

Cook Time1

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Greek, Mediterranean

Keyword: grilled, seafood

Servings:

Calories: 891kcal

Equipment

2 metal skewers

Ingredients

600 grams (1.5 pounds) large squid I used 2 big ones
1 lemon cut in quarters to serve with
dried oregano to sprinkle on top

For The Marinade:

2 tablespoons olive oil + some extra to brush the squid and the grill grates
2 tablespoons lemon juice
⅔ teaspoon dry oregano
fine sea salt
freshly ground pepper
½ sweet red pepper cut into 2.5-3 cm squared pieces
½ green bell pepper cut into 2.5-3 cm squared pieces
½ small red onion cut into 2.5-3 cm squared pieces

For The Olive Oil + Lemon Sauce:

1½ tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon lemon zest

For The Grilled Potatoes:

500 grams (1.1 pounds) small potatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
salt and pepper

Instructions

If using frozen squid thaw in the fridge overnight or add in a bowl with cold water at room temperature for 1-2 hours.
Add the ingredients for the olive oil and lemon sauce in a small bowl and set aside.
Preheat oven to 200°C / 390°F.
Prepare the potatoes. Rinse and rub the skin of the potatoes. Then cut them into 1.5 cm thick slices. Add to a baking dish (not stacked) and drizzle with the olive oil and lemon juice, sprinkle the oregano and garlic powder, season with salt and pepper, add 4 tablespoons of water, and toss and mix well.
Bake the potatoes for about 30 minutes until fork tender and no water remains inside the dish. Don't overbake them so they won't break when grilling them. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Prepare the squid. Pull the head away from the body. Cut under the legs and discard that part containing the teeth and eyes. Remove everything from inside the squid's body. Pull and remove the membranes from the body. Score the flesh very lightly on top making diagonal lines on both sides of the squid (we're not making actual cuts here).
Cut the squid. Cut and remove the fins. Beginning from the top of the body cut the squid into 2,5-3 cm thick rings. When you reach the narrow part of the body slice open it in half. Then cut each half into long strips about the same thickness as the rings (see notes below). Rinse well. Drain in a strainer. And then pat dry with paper towels.
Marinate. Add the squid to a small bowl season with salt and pepper and mix with all of the ingredients for the marinade. Marinate for 20 minutes at room temperature.
Heat your grill pan or BBQ on high.
Thread the skewers. Thread each squid ring tightly on the skewer, by folding it one or two times, depending on how long each ring is. After each piece of squid, add a piece of vegetable as well (pepper or onion from the marinade). Thread also the fins and squid strips, the head we will grill separately.
Grill. Brush the grates of the grill or grill pan with olive oil. Brush also the squid and then place on the grill. Grill on high heat for 8-10 minutes to sear and color all around (turn after the first 2-3 minutes of grilling not sooner). Then drop the heat to low and grill for about 17-20 minutes longer.
Overall grill time is about 25 to 30 minutes. Prick the squid towards the end to see how tender it feels it's meat shouldn't feel or look slippery anymore.
To grill the potatoes either add them around the squid skewers, or if it's easier for you, grill them before the squid and keep them in a warm oven. To grill the potatoes, again brush the grates of the grill with the oil (no need to brush the potatoes) and grill them for about 10-15 minutes, to roast and crisp on both sides.
Serve. Stir the lemon sauce vigorously to combine and drizzle over the grilled skewers (no need to add it all). Sprinkle some dried oregano on top of the squid and potatoes. You may also sprinkle the potatoes with any minced fresh herbs of your preference, such as parsley, dill, mint, or chives (I used parsley).

Notes

Notes: Each squid ring is folded 1 or two times (depending on how big it is) to be threaded to the skewer. Therefore, the bottom part of the squid (where the fins are located) isn't cut into rings because the rings it yields aren't big enough to be folded and therefore secured onto the skewer. That's why we cut this part into strips which are easier to thread to the skewer.

Nutrition