Stir-fried squid with luffa on rice
Scored squid that curls into tender rolls, with sweet, juicy luffa in a light sauce — no chilli or pepper, just clean, fresh flavours.
- 28 min
- Serves 2
- Stir-fry
- Medium
Why it suits you: Yin-deficient people run hot inside, and summer heat at the solstice scorches fluids, bringing a dry mouth, hot palms and soles and restless sleep. Luffa clears heat, cools the blood and generates fluids, while squid nourishes yin and blood — both at their best in summer. A simple stir-fry without chilli or pepper stays sweet and fresh without fanning the fire.
Method
Prep 20 min · Cook 8 min- 1Peel the membrane off the squid, score the inside in a criss-cross pattern and cut into pieces. Rub with the salt and a little cornflour, rinse and pat dry. Peel the hard ridges off the luffa and cut into wedges.
- 2Bring a pan of water to the boil with a splash of the wine and blanch the squid for 10 seconds, until it curls; drain.
- 3Heat the oil in a wok, fry the ginger and garlic until fragrant, then stir-fry the luffa for 2 minutes until soft and juicy.
- 4Add the squid, the rest of the wine and the spring onion and toss over high heat for 30 seconds. Thicken lightly with the soy sauce, sugar and remaining cornflour mixed with water, and serve with rice.
Cautions
- Squid is high in cholesterol; eat it only occasionally if you have high cholesterol or gout.
Chef's tips
- Blanch and stir-fry the squid quickly, stopping as soon as it curls — any longer and it turns rubbery.
The TCM view
Squid is sweet, salty and neutral, nourishing yin and blood and tonifying deficiency. Luffa is sweet and cool, clearing heat, cooling the blood, resolving toxicity and unblocking the channels. Ginger removes fishiness and settles the stomach, and rice harmonises the middle. Cool luffa with neutral squid nourishes yin and clears heat without chilling, ideal when summer heat injures yin.
