Bahamian Salad

Bahamian Salad

Bahamian Salad

Conch is found all over the Caribbean, Bahamas, and the Florida keys. It is kind of a cross between scallops and squid in texture, but light and sweet in flavor. Conch is typically eaten raw, only being “cooked” from citrus acidity. This is an item that you’ll have s hard time finding in a regular grocery store. I happened to have found really good quality frozen conch at my local Asian market for $8/lb.
Bahamians call this particular dish a salad, but it’s really conch ceviche. The conch gets cleaned, tenderized with a mallet, cubed, then marinated in old sour for a few minutes. This helps with further tenderization and adds heat to the conch meat. After that, the liquid is drained. All of the ingredients get tossed together and a marinated for a half hour in lemon, lime, and orange juice. Serve with tortilla chips, tostada shells, or even eat as a taco.
Prep Time10 minutes
Marinating Time40 minutes
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Bahamian
Keyword: appetizer, Bahamian, Caribbean, seafood
Author: Alex Gorgos

Equipment

  • mallet

Ingredients

  • 3 conch
  • old sour
  • 1/2 medium red onion finely chopped
  • 1 medium red bell pepper finely chopped
  • 2 small roma tomatoes seeded and finely chopped
  • 1 mango diced
  • 1 serrano pepper finely chopped
  • 1 lime juiced
  • 1 lemon juiced
  • 1 orange juiced
  • salt to taste

Instructions

  • Wash and trim any inedible parts on your conch.
    Bahamian, appetizer, seafood
  • Butterfly open the conch. Using a mallet, pound the fuck out of the conch on both sides.
    Bahamian, appetizer, seafood
  • Dice into small cubes.
    Bahamian, appetizer, seafood
  • Marinate for 10 minutes in enough old sour to cover the conch. Drain the liquid.
    Bahamian, appetizer, seafood
  • In a large bowl, mix together all of the ingredients. Allow them to marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
    Bahamian, appetizer, seafood
Bahamian, appetizer, seafood
Season with sea salt to taste. Serve with tortilla chips, tostada shells, or even the filling in corn tortillas.