Chipirones en su tinta is a dish from the north of Spain — mainly the Basque Country and Cantabria. Small squid braised in their own ink, with a sofrito of onion and tomato. The result is black, dense, almost haunting in the mouth. Served on black rice, with a touch of saffron aioli, it is one of the most striking dishes in the Iberian repertoire.

It is also simpler than it looks. The technique comes down to a few clear steps. The secret is not complexity but patience: let the ink reduce slowly, do not cover, do not rush.

The ingredients — six key elements

  • 500 g of chipirones (small squid), fresh or frozen. With their ink sacs, or failing that a sachet of squid ink bought separately.
  • One large sweet onion. Finely sliced.
  • Two cloves of garlic. Chopped.
  • One large ripe tomato, grated. The base of the sofrito.
  • 200 ml of fish stock. Homemade or good quality, never from a cube.
  • 10 cl of dry white wine. Albariño, Verdejo or Txakoli.

For the black rice on the side: 250 g of Bomba rice, twice its volume in stock (this time enriched with an extra sachet of ink), a little saffron and sweet pimentón.

The technique in four acts

  1. The sofrito. Sweat the onion in a spoonful of extra virgin olive oil over a low heat for ten minutes — it should melt, not brown. Add the garlic, then the grated tomato two minutes later, and let it reduce for twenty minutes.
  2. The chipirones. Add the squid whole (without cleaning them out — keep the ink sac intact or collect it separately in a bowl). Sear for two minutes over a high heat.
  3. The liquid. Pour in the white wine and let it reduce by half. Add the fish stock, the ink from the sacs (or the sachet), and salt. Simmer for thirty minutes, uncovered, over a very low heat. The sauce should gradually darken and thicken.
  4. The black rice. Meanwhile, in another pan: toast the Bomba rice for one minute in a spoonful of olive oil, add the hot fish stock (with ink + saffron + sweet pimentón), salt, and cook for eighteen minutes over a low heat, covered.
The chef's corner · Hector speaks
Saffron aioli — the finishing touch

What takes this dish from "impressive" to "unforgettable" is a small pot of saffron aioli set on the table beside it. The recipe: three spoonfuls of homemade (or good-quality) mayonnaise, one clove of garlic finely grated, a pinch of La Mancha saffron infused in a spoonful of hot water, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Mix, serve on the side. A spoonful on the black rice and the squid: the contrast is striking — deep black, sunny yellow, the sea and the garlic.

Plating — putting it on the plate

  1. A nest of black rice in the centre. Set down with a spoon, lightly pressed.
  2. Three or four chipirones on top. With their sauce, generously.
  3. A spoonful of saffron aioli on the side. Not mixed in — everyone mixes it with their own spoon.
  4. A light shower of snipped chives. Three or four stems are enough.
30 min
Slow cooking, uncovered
18 min
Cooking time for the Bomba rice
3
Colours on the plate: black, yellow, green

The drink pairing

A glass of ice-cold Txakoli from the Basque Country, with its fine bubbles and salinity, or a structured Albariño from the Rías Baixas. Red wine is out — it shuts the dish down. The sea and the black ink call for a fresh, mineral white.

Squid ink is the ink of the ocean. You taste the whole sea in it.Basque cooking
The chef's corner · Hector speaks
The sauce test

The ink sauce is ready when it coats the back of a spoon. Draw a line with your finger across the upturned spoon: if the trace holds for two seconds without closing up, it is done. If the sauce runs straight away, cook it five minutes longer — still uncovered, still over a low heat. Patience, and more patience.

The takeaway

This dish impresses with its colour, but its technique is within reach. The long sofrito, the infused ink, the slow uncovered cooking. And the touch of saffron aioli that takes the dish to another dimension. For guests: a showpiece dish that is ready in fifty minutes.

Paella rice, saffron, pimentón de la Vera and extra virgin olive oil are all in our catalogue. Delivery in Switzerland in 3 to 7 working days, free returns within 14 days.