Living by Boston's waterfront, we always had access to the freshest seafood. We were within walking distance of the docks where fishing boats loaded their catch into a large processing warehouse. Fish were hand cleaned, fileted and sorted. Most were destined for distribution to restaurants and markets. Limited days and times were opened to the public.
Locally at the corner of Salem and Cross Streets was Giuffre's Fish Market. It was a well-known Boston treasure featuring a huge selection of the freshest seafood anywhere. Everything from live lobsters to recently caught cod, halibut and flounder were available daily. They even had a stainless steel vat designed specifically to house live snails.
Squid was almost a throw away species, often used for bait. Being Italian, we knew how special they were. Competition kept prices low but once the general population was exposed to fried calamari and other squid specialties, prices skyrocketed. The availability of squid already cleaned also increased demand and costs.
Baby octopus was available in the North End but seldom seen in traditional grocery store chains outside. Today's pricing also suggests demand is still limited. My local gourmet grocery store sold the pound of baby octopus in the picture below for almost half the price of the squid they displayed.
Squid and octopu's salads were almost always in our refrigerator, available for lunch, snacks, or even as a main course with hunks of artesian bread.
Please make this dish a day ahead. Sitting overnight, garlic mellows and flavors merge. Don't get me wrong, it's terrific when first made but even better with time. You can also add a little more lemon and can adjust salt. Serve with a spoon. Every mouthful is best with an ample puddle of dressing.
Squid submerged in boiling water cooks quickly. Smaller 3" to 5" squid tubes cut into rings takes about a minute, larger and thicker, perhaps a minute and a half. If steaming, about 3 minutes for smaller tubes. Squid is cooked when rings just begin to firm. Anything more, they will become tough and rubbery.
Although octopus is thicker, they seem to cook even quicker before becoming tougher. Some use a dipping technique, plunging raw octopus in and out of a pan of boiling water to ensure they don't overcook.
Our family resisted any temptations to make this dish into a mixed seafood salad or incorporate any number of added ingredients. Why mess with anything this good and there are many other terrific recipes for shrimp and muscles by themselves?
For Squid:
For Baby Octopus:
