Grilled Squid with Thai Chili Lime

Step 1

Hold each squid body under cold running water and pull the head away from the body; the insides will come out with it. Discard the head and insides. Rinse the body inside and out until clean.

Step 2

Pat the cleaned squid bodies dry with paper towels, inside and outside. This helps them char when grilled.

Step 3

Mince the garlic until the pieces are smaller than a grain of rice — about the size of pencil-tip dots — and place in a small bowl.

Step 4

Slice the bird's eye chilies lengthwise into thin strips, removing the seeds if you prefer less heat, and add to the bowl with garlic.

Step 5

Cut both limes in half and juice them into the bowl, then stir in 3 tablespoons of fish sauce and 2 tablespoons of olive oil until uniform. This is your sauce.

Step 6

Place a grill pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat and wait until it is very hot — when you hold your hand 2 inches above the surface, you should feel strong heat within 2 seconds, about 2 minutes.

Step 7

Lay the squid bodies flat on the hot pan and cook without moving them for 90 seconds, until the undersides turn golden-brown with dark char marks.

Step 8

Flip each squid body over and cook the other side for 90 seconds until similarly charred, then slide onto a cutting board.

Step 9

Let the squid rest for 1 minute, then slice each body lengthwise into half-inch-wide rings, like cutting a tube into noodles.

Step 10

Transfer the sliced squid to a serving plate and pour the Thai chili-lime sauce over the top, making sure to coat all the pieces.