On a recent trip to the Bahamas, sponsored by Bahamas Tourism, I had the opportunity to sample the best of Bahamian cuisine. One theme though kept surfacing throughout all of my culinary adventures: Bahamians like conch – a lot.
Not unlike Bubba from Forrest Gump, local chefs regaled me with all of the ways in which conch could be prepared. Conch salad, conch soup, grilled conch, raw conch, baked conch and of course, conch fritters.
As I revealed in my post about being a picky eater, I am not a huge fan of seafood. But, I made a promise to myself recently that when traveling, I will at least try whatever is placed before me. I was never so happy about this promise than while visiting the Bahamas.
Perhaps it is because anything fried is therefore good, but I loved conch fritters. I enjoyed them several times during my brief stay in the islands and couldn’t get enough of them. While fried, they are also light and when served with the right sauce, make for an amazing appetizer. What I liked best is that they didn’t taste like seafood, which means that they tasted good.
I wish I could find them here in Washington, DC, but I fear it’s not an easy find. It does present though another reason to visit one of my favorite travel destinations, the Bahamas.
In case you are able to find fresh conch, here is a recipe for the famous Bahamian Conch Fritters.
Ingredients
Fritters:
1 quart oil for frying
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup chopped conch meat
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Dipping Sauce:
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1. Heat the oil in a large pot or deep fryer to 365 degrees F
2. In a bowl, mix the flour, egg, and milk. Season with salt and pepper. Mix in the conch meat, onion and garlic.
3. Drop the batter by rounded tablespoons into the hot oil, and fry until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
4. In a bowl, mix the ketchup, lime juice, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper. Serve dipping sauce on the side with the fritters.
