I’ve had a love affair with Peruvian food ever since my oldest sister was in high school and her first boyfriend’s family was from Peru. I remember trying it for the first time and it was amazing. To this day (she’s no longer with him) but we all still can’t get enough of the cuisine. My all time favorite dish is a Saltado de Mariscos. It’s like a stir fry made with shrimp, squid and octopus toss in with french fries. It’s amazing with rice and some green aji sauce. I can’t get enough of it. I like to think this recipe is good enough to serve for a dinner party to impress.
To make the fries, cut the potatoes into desired fry shape and then soak in cold water for 10 minutes. Drain, pat dry and then toss in 2 tablespoons oil and season with salt, pepper, granulated garlic and granulated onion. Place in an air fryer in a single layer and cook until golden and crispy, about 15 to 18 minutes. Shake halfway through cooking.
**Note: You can also cook the fries in a 400°F oven for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.**
Heat a wok or a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Once hot add a tablespoon of oil and add the shrimp. Season with salt and pepper and cook until they’ve just turned pink, about 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
**Tip: Depending on how big your shrimp are, they’ll cook rather quickly. You don’t want to overcook the shrimp at all. So cook until just turned pink.**
Add another tablespoon of oil to the wok and then add the squid. Cook until no longer opaque, about 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to the plate with the shrimp.
**Tip: Squid will cook super fast, especially if the wok is super hot. You can also add octopus or scallops to this dish as well, and you’d cook it in the same way as the shrimp and squid.**
Add another tablespoon of oil to the wok and add red onion in two batches, cooking until charred. Transfer to the plate with the seafood.
**Note: I like to do this in batches so that they charr evenly and they don’t overcrowd the pan.**
Then add the scallions, chile, garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring often, until softened. Push to the side and add the tomatoes. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes to slightly brown and soften the tomatoes.
Then return the seafood and onions (along with the accumulated juices) to the wok. Drizzle in the soy sauce and vinegar and give it all a toss. Once ready to serve, add the fries and cilantro and quickly toss once more to combine.
Some people like to serve with the fries on the side because they don’t want them to get soggy, but I’ve always had them mixed in and if you time it perfectly and toss them in at the very end, you’ll be alright.
Also, you can easily make this dish with either beef or chicken instead if you’d like. And if you want to make this super easy you can use frozen fries and just heat them up in the oven or air fryer.
I hope you’ll give this one a try because it’s so good and it happens to be my favorite Peruvian dish. This served with green aji sauce….forget about it. Let me know what you think below and as always, thank you so much for reading and following along!
Saltado de Mariscos
Equipment
- Wok
Ingredients
- 3 large potatoes
- 1/3 cup neutral cooking oil divided
- Kosher salt and coarse black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated onion
- 1 pound large shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1 pound squid tubes and tentacles sliced
- 1 medium red onion sliced
- 4 scallions cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 Peruvian aji pepper or yellow chile sliced
- 2 medium garlic cloves minced
- 1 inch ginger peeled and minced
- 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves chopped
- Cooked white rice for serving
Instructions
- To make the fries, cut the potatoes into desired fry shape and then soak in cold water for 10 minutes. Drain, pat dry and then toss in 2 tablespoons oil and season with salt, pepper, granulated garlic and granulated onion. Place in an air fryer in a single layer and cook until golden and crispy, about 15 to 18 minutes. Shake halfway through cooking. You can also cook the fries in a 400°F oven for 18 to 20 minutes.
- Heat a wok or a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Once hot add a tablespoon of oil and add the shrimp. Season with salt and pepper and cook until they've just turned pink, about 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the wok and then add the squid. Cook until no longer opaque, about 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to the plate with the shrimp.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the wok and add red onion in two batches, cooking until charred. Transfer to the plate with the seafood. Then add the scallions, chile, garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring often, until softened. Push to the side and add the tomatoes. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes to slightly brown and soften the tomatoes.
- Then return the seafood and onions (along with the accumulated juices) to the wok. Drizzle in the soy sauce and vinegar and give it all a toss. Once ready to serve, add the fries and cilantro and quickly toss once more to combine. Serve with rice and enjoy!
This recipe is superb. Well done!
excited to try! I make lomo saltado often, never considered a seafood version!
thank you, nice dish and love green aji sauce ever since I first tried it in a Peruvian restuarant