Calamari Fra' Diavolo 

It's funny, as an Italian, to discover how abroad they often attribute recipes that we don't even know: this is the case of Calamari Fra' Diavolo! I found this recipe by chance years ago: I had some calamari (which I love: so I started looking on the web and I came across several versions of this recipe.) Loving spicy food very much, I was immediately attracted to it: I tried to read up on it and I discovered that "Fra' Diavolo" really existed! 

His name was Michele Arcangelo Pezza, a brigand who lived between the end of the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth century. He was rewarded with the title of Duke of Cassano, but he could not be satisfied with the situation as the French had managed to quell the revolts. Not content with that, he made yet another appeal to the popular masses for a new attempt at resistance.

He barricaded himself in Sora with 500 men, after three days the city was surrounded, but Fra Diavolo managed to escape to the Miranda Mountains, becoming the number one wanted man in the entire Kingdom of Naples. The manhunt lasted 15 days. Exhausted, with a decreasing number of men and very few resources, Fra Diavolo was finally captured in Baronissi, taken to prison in Naples and sentenced to death by the Extraordinary Court.

He was hanged on November 11, 1806, in Piazza del Mercato, dressed in the uniform of a brigadier of the Bourbon army. As soon as the Royal Family was informed of his death, they celebrated the funeral of the man who had dedicated and sacrificed his life for his homeland and for the Bourbon dynasty in the Cathedral of Palermo.

Now, I don't know that Fra' Diavolo was a renowned chef, so I came to the conclusion that, for foreigners, "Fra' Diavolo" is synonymous with something Italian with a spicy taste. Chili pepper is therefore mandatory! You can use it fresh or dried, whole or ground, you choose how much to put in: we do not all have the same tolerance threshold of spicy, so I advise you not to overdo it at the beginning and possibly add more at the end of cooking. Let's take a look at the few simple steps necessary to prepare the delicious calamari alla Fra' Diavolo!

Ingredients

800 g squid (preferably fresh)

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

500 ml tomato puree

1/2 cup red wine

chili pepper (fresh or dried)

oregano

1 tsp spicy paprika

salt

extra virgin olive oil

parsley

Procedure

First, clean up the squid. After gutting them (or having them gutted by the fishmonger), clean them of skin and cartilage and rinse them well, then cut them into slices. Cut the fins into small pieces (cleaning them from the cartilaginous base) and the tentacles. Finely chop the onion. Crush two cloves of garlic with the blade side of a knife without peeling them. If you like garlic very much, you can peel it, remove the core (which is not very digestible) and chop it finely together with the onion. Sauté the garlic and onion in a large, high-sided pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Add the chili pepper as well: I put a whole fresh pepper or two dried ones, but you choose the intensity you want based on the spiciness of the chili pepper you have at home. If you particularly like spicy, I recommend cutting the fresh chili into slices. Add the squid and cook over high heat, then add the wine. Let it cook over high heat for about five minutes. Lower the heat and add the tomato puree, then season with salt, add a pinch of oregano, a teaspoon of paprika and consider whether to add more chili. Cover the pan and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes, then remove the lid and let the sauce dry a little. Top with plenty of chopped parsley and serve. Bon appétit, your calamari Fra' Diavolo are ready to be enjoyed... The scarpetta is a must!