There is a little restaurant in the Vietnamese stronghold of Victoria Street in Melbourne’s Richmond that serves the best salt-and-pepper squid. It’s not so much about the salt or the pepper but the chilli and the crispy fried nibs of garlic. It is gorgeous – slightly sweet, salty, crisp, crunchy and intensely garlicky, with a hit of chilli heat at the end. Pow! That’s what I’m talkin’ about. Here’s my take on this classic dish. 1. Rinse the squid, then separate the hood and tentacles. Rinse and remove the contents of each hood and rinse again. Remove the head and beak from the tentacles and rinse again. Remove the quill from inside the hoods and discard. Score each hood lightly on the softer side on the diagonal with the tip of a sharp knife then repeat in the other direction to form a neat criss-cross pattern. Cut each hood into 4 cm pieces and set aside with the tentacles. 2. Heat a splash of the oil in a wok over low heat and fry the garlic until just golden. Remove the garlic with a slotted spoon and transfer to paper towel to drain, then set aside. 3. Mix the cornfl our, rice fl our, salt and pepper in a bowl and set aside. Place the egg white in a stainless-steel bowl, then beat until light and foamy. Place the squid first into the egg white, then lift out, wipe off the excess and toss through the flour mixture. Set aside. 4. Heat oil for deep-frying in a large, deep, heavy-based saucepan until it registers 185°C on a candy thermometer. Working in batches if necessary, deep-fry the squid for 4 minutes or until crisp, then remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel. 5. Heat a splash of extra oil in the wok and fry the spring onion, chilli and ginger for a few seconds over medium heat, then add the squid and coriander and toss together. Tip the lot onto a plate and serve with the lettuce, cucumber, garlic and coriander sprigs.