Deep-Fried Crispy Squid with Pepper Jelly Dip

scrambled hen fruit, this post is for you!

I came across this fabulous pepper jelly recipe from one of my favourite blogs, scrambled hen fruit.  What really caught my attention to this recipe is the usage of hot chili peppers and dried apricots!  I love chili and apricot, and this seems to be the perfect combination!  Now one of the ingredients needed for making this jelly is liquid pectin.  I have been looking for this liquid pectin for more than a year, yes, I have a lot of KIV recipes for preserves and such, and this is one of the base ingredients needed.  The store which I usually go to for my bakery needs, happens to bring in powdered pectin as one of their new product.  I was estactic and bought a bottle.  The problem is, ALL the recipes that I came across either use liquid pectin or preserving sugar (sugar with pectin added).  Now I found out from the web that 2 tbsp of liquid pectin equals to 4 tsp of powdered pectin.  And, scrambled hen fruit informed me that a packet of liquid pectin is equivalent to 90 ml. By conversion, I should use about 12 tsp of powdered pectin. 

The original recipe from scrambledhenfruit is actually called "Habanero Gold Jelly". Again, I could not find the habanero peppers over here!  So I use the jalapeno peppers and our local, extremely hot bird-eye chili.  I was tempted to use more of the bird-eye chili, but too much of it, will be too hot for my kids, so I only use about 5 of these.  I then set out to make this long-awaited jelly.  Apparently, by using 12 tsp of the powdered pectin is not enough, the jelly doesn't set after leaving it overnight.  The next morning, I heat it up again and add in another 4 to 5 tsp more.  It sets up beautifully after that, but I guess I added a little bit too much of the pectin and it sets slightly harder than I like it to. But no problem, when I want to use it, I just mix a little bit of hot water, microwave on high for about a minute and  mix until I get the consistency I want.  I think that in total 14-15 tsp of powdered pectin will be just right. It will set further upon refrigeration.

This pepper jelly turned out fabulous.  I reduced the sugar to 2-1/2 cups and add another 2 tbsps of the vinegar, because I like it slightly more sour.  This jelly is great as a dipping sauce.  I deep-fried some squid for our dinner with this pepper jelly as the dipping sauce.  The reaction from the family,  they love it!  My daughter asked me "where did you learn to make this nice sauce?"  So for the full recipe and instructions on this fantastic "Habanero Gold Jelly", please stop by "scrambledhenfruit" and also, look out for her beautiful seedless blackberry jam!  (My eyes just 'pop-out' when I saw this!) I wish I could make this, but imported blackberry are definitely not easy to find, and it will definitely cost a bomb!

Thank you scrambledhenfruit, for sharing this fabulous jelly recipe!


My next 'project' is to make my own liquid pectin using apples and lemons, since I can't seem to find any over here!


If you would like to try the crispy fried squid, here's the recipe :

Deep-Fried Crispy Squid
Ingredients :
500gm squid
oil for deep frying


For the batter :
100gm plain flour
50gm cornflour
1 tbsp custard powder
1 tbsp baking powder
dash of pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp celery salt (or 1/4 tsp mixed spice)
150 ml water
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp cooking oil


Method :
Clean squid, cut to rounds.  Blanch in boiling water for 10 seconds. Drain and pat dry.
In a bowl, combine all batter ingredients except the cooking oil, and mix to a thick batter.  Gradually stir in the cooking oil and stir till well combined.
Heat oil for deep-frying.  Dip pieces of squid in batter till well coated. Fry in hot oil about 1 minute on both sides until golden brown and crispy.  Drain on paper towels to absorb excess oil.  Serve while hot and crispy with your favourite dipping sauce.


Pepper Jelly Dipping Sauce
2 tablespoons pepper jelly
1/2 tbsp hot water
1/4 tsp salt or to taste
Mix pepper jelly with hot water and microwave on high for 1 minute. Remove and stir to combine, extra hot water may be added if you like a thinner consistency,  add some salt to taste and stir till evenly mixed.  Serve immediately.