Dalian Iron-Plate Squid

Dalian iron-plate squid is the most popular grill of the city's night markets and streets, a whole fresh squid seared on a sizzling iron plate and repeatedly brushed with garlic, chilli sauce and cumin until the skin is lightly charred and the flesh springy and fragrant.

With sea on three sides and squid in abundance, Dalian took to the iron-plate grilling method introduced from outside and married it to local seafood, forming the distinctly Dalian iron-plate squid that has since spread to night markets across China.

Grilled to order at night-market stalls, served whole or cut into skewers and eaten hot with the sauce brushed on, it is springy and intensely garlicky, one of the most common late-night bites at a summer street stall.

The char from the searing iron plate, the springiness of the whole squid and the bold garlic-chilli sauce are the marks of Dalian iron-plate squid.