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Calamari Stew

Calamari Stew Pin

This easy calamari stew recipe can be a delicious main or appetizer. It is slowly simmered with olives on a stove top until tender.

Homemade Calamari Stew

Calamari stew in tomato sauce is my favorite way of cooking calamari. Add seasoning and olives and you have a delicious meal, perfect for special occasion or any time you like.

Below, in this post you will find useful tips and serving suggestions, as well as more seafood recipes you might like. Detailed instructions on how to make calamari stew are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Ingedients of Calamari Stew

Serving suggestions:

If you are wondering what to serve with this simple calamari stew, I have a few ideas for you. The truth is that I love my bread, so these suggestions will be based around this.

Any artisan bread or Potato Bread will work wonders – just dip it into a sauce and you’ll be in for a treat. Now, I would also suggest having bread as a side when you are serving this as an entrée or appetizer. The portions will be smaller and you won’t eat a whole loaf to make you feel full. Crostini, toasted bread or even grilled bread are also delicious options.

For a main, my absolutely favorite side dish to go with calamari stew is Homemade Polenta. It is so easy to make and can be seasoned to your liking. Rosemary, parsley, butter, parmesan – the options are endless.

Polenta fries also go well with calamari stew, but they do take a bit longer to prepare.

Steps how to make calamari stew

Defrosting calamari rings

You can either place the bag onto a plate and keep it in the fridge overnight, or you can place the bag in a cold water and let it thaw. It will take about 30 minutes. The larger the bag, the longer it can take to defrost as they might be stuck to each other. For that reason, I would recommend trying to break the clusters, if possible.

For best possible results or if you can, buy fresh calamari.

Mixing and Cooking Calamari Stew

Squid or calamari?

To make this calamari stew, feel free to use either of those. But if you don’t care about your budget and if you have a chance, I would suggest getting calamari. While it is more expensive than squid, it is more tender, hence tastier.

Calamari Stew in Tomato Sauce

Tips for making calamari stew:

  • Please take the cooking time stated in my recipe as a guide. You might need more/less time cooking calamari stew. This will depend on the size and thickness of the rings you used. I could only find frozen squid rings that were quite thick, so my calamari stew definitely needed about 50 minutes to be cooked.
  • I used slightly more than a ¼ cup of olives and even though I would prefer more, it’s better not to add more. The reason is simple – they are quite salty on their own and when you add them to this simple seafood stew, they will flavor it. Adding way too many can easily over-season your stew.
  • For best results, don’t substitute garlic cloves with garlic powder.
  • Calamari stew can be thickened with concentrated tomato puree, if you like.
Calamari Stew with Creamy Polenta

More seafood recipes for you to try:

  • Spanish Octopus Appetizers
  • Spicy Shrimp Spaghetti
  • Salmon in Puff Pastry
  • Oven Baked Sea Bass
Calamari Stew Recipe
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4.84 from 6 votes

Calamari Stew

This easy calamari stew recipe can be a delicious main or appetizer. It is slowly simmered with olives on a stove top until tender.
Prep Time5 mins
Cook Time55 mins
Total Time1 hr
Servings: 2 Portions (as Main) or 3-4 as Appetizer
Calories: 463
Author: Julia

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 1 Small Onion , minced
  • 3 Garlic Cloves , crushed, see note 1
  • 14 ounces Frozen Calamari Rings , thawed (390 grams)
  • 2 cups Pureed Tomatoes , see note 2
  • 1 teaspoon Dried Thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt , see note 3
  • 1/8 teaspoon Black Pepper
  • 1/4 cup Green Olives , without stones (45 grams)
  • 1/4 cup Fresh Parsley , finely chopped
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Instructions 

  • In a saucepan, heat the oil. Add minced onion and saute for 6-8 minutes, stirring from time to time. Add crushed garlic cloves and saute for about 2 minutes or until the garlic releases its aroma.
    Steps how to make calamari stew
  • Add 2 cups of pureed tomatoes, salt, pepper and calamari rings. Simmer covered on medium-low for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, stir in olives and chopped parsley and simmer for a further 30 minutes or until the calamari is soft.
    Mixing and Cooking Calamari Stew
  • Enjoy as an appetizer or main!

Notes

  1. 3 garlic cloves should yield at least 1 teaspoon of pressed garlic
  2. Using a good quality pureed tomatoes will make your stew extra delicious. Crushed tomatoes or tomato passata can also be used as substitution.
  3. I don’t recommend using more than ½ teaspoon of salt at the beginning as you will be adding olives at a later stage. Olives will add extra saltiness to this stew so please do add more salt only if it is needed – after you have tasted it at the end of cooking.
Course: Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Calamari Recipe, Calamari Stew Recipe
Nutrition Facts
Calamari Stew
Amount per Serving
Calories
463
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
20
g
31
%
Saturated Fat
 
3
g
19
%
Cholesterol
 
462
mg
154
%
Sodium
 
1012
mg
44
%
Potassium
 
1778
mg
51
%
Carbohydrates
 
38
g
13
%
Fiber
 
7
g
29
%
Sugar
 
15
g
17
%
Protein
 
37
g
74
%
Vitamin A
 
2100
IU
42
%
Vitamin C
 
53
mg
64
%
Calcium
 
160
mg
16
%
Iron
 
7
mg
39
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
** As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
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Comments

  1. Sue says

    08/08/2020 at 14:33

    This sounds amazing and so different! I need to try this soon!5 stars

    Reply
    • Julia | Happy Foods Tube says

      10/08/2020 at 08:48

      Hope you like it!

      Reply
  2. Jen says

    08/08/2020 at 15:18

    This is so good with crusty bread! You’ll want to scrape up every last bit of this stew.5 stars

    Reply
    • Julia | Happy Foods Tube says

      10/08/2020 at 08:48

      Absolutely! :)

      Reply
  3. Traci says

    08/08/2020 at 15:24

    Easy and delicious! I love the flavor of olives and tomato too! Thanks for sharing :)5 stars

    Reply
    • Julia | Happy Foods Tube says

      10/08/2020 at 08:48

      You are welcome, Traci!

      Reply
  4. Peter says

    08/08/2020 at 15:40

    OMGGG, can we just talk about this red tomato sauce? Super simple ingredients to make an insanely flavorful sauce. Your photos make this look incredibly easy for a wonderful calamari!

    Lastly, I appreciate you called out the cooking time in your tips – to use it as a guide. Sometimes people like to follow things to a TEE, but it ultimately depends on the size of your calamari, but also your stovetop. A perfect meal! Perfect for group parties too to impress my guests :)5 stars

    Reply
    • Julia | Happy Foods Tube says

      10/08/2020 at 08:47

      Glad to hear you found the tips useful, Peter.

      Reply
  5. Jill says

    08/08/2020 at 16:21

    I’ve only ever eaten fried calamari. Looking forward to trying this tasty, more healthy way to enjoy calamari.5 stars

    Reply
    • Julia | Happy Foods Tube says

      10/08/2020 at 08:46

      Enjoy! :)

      Reply
  6. Jessica says

    24/02/2023 at 16:46

    Can i simmer it in the slow cooker?

    Reply
    • Julia | Happy Foods Tube says

      25/02/2023 at 10:38

      Hi Jessica. I don’t see a reason why not. I would recommend sauteing the onion and garlic in a pan though. Happy Cooking!

      Reply

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