Joe’s Conch Shack’s Bahamian Conch Salad, Traditional Recipe and Big Mike’s Tropical Twist

The best thing about going to the Bahamas besides the beautiful pink sand beaches and the turquoise clear water are the conch salad huts all over most of the islands. The conch is fresh from the ocean, its a little sweet, firm and a little bit briny. Chopped finely, conch is great raw in either a chopped vegetable salad or a fresh tomato based conch chowder. If you live in Florida or the tropics, then conch is pretty easy to find. Most seafood suppliers have it in their frozen section, as it freezes well. If you do not live in a tropical location, then you can order yours online and it will be delivered fresh to your door. Conch is lean, healthy and full of protein. I have included the recipe given to me by Joe’s conch stand in Bimini. However, you can change it up a bit. Everybody seems to have their own version. I also included how to make it tropical by adding fresh fruit. We had the most delicious tropical conch salad at a conch stand on the ocean called Big Mikes. Cooked chopped lobster is always a good addition. If you do not want to use conch, then just substitute fresh cooked coarsely chopped shrimp.

Fisherman and his conch catch for the day

Prep Time: 15 minutes

No cooking Time

Ingredients:

1 lb. minced fresh conch (3-4 conchs cleaned)

small onion, white or red, minced

1 small tomato, diced

½ green pepper, diced

1 lime, juiced

½ teaspoon garlic salt

Optional Additions to this recipe:

juice of ½ lemon

1 chopped spicy pepper, jalapeño for mild, habanero for very hot

Directions:

Combine all ingredients, refrigerate. Serve with hot sauce on the side.

Big Mike, Located on top of a hill on the beach in North Bimini, adds a tropical twist to his conch salad by adding fruit and a squeeze of fresh orange juice at the end.

Tropical Conch Salad Variation:

Many places throughout the Bahamas offer a tropical conch salad too. The secret is that they chop it all right in front of you so you know it is fresh. Use the basic conch recipe and add some or all of the following to taste:

Ingredients:

Basic Conch Salad Recipe

Pineapple

Apple

Pear

Mango

Top with a squeeze of fresh juice from ½ of an orange

Directions:

To make the conch salad a tropical conch salad, use the regular conch salad recipe and add chopped fruit to the mix. At the end, squeeze a half of a orange over your conch to top it off. Big Mike used all of the fruits mentioned.