Holiday Meals Prepared in Your Home or Rental Property

Do you want to have a spectacular Holiday Meal prepared for

 you at home? Check out one of our sample menus, then call

Key West Personal Chef. 305-731-6967

                                     

Sample Holiday Menu

Scallops & Plantain

Seared Scallop Crostini, Plantain Jam, Rum Gastric

Stone Crab Cakes

Key Lime Caper Remoulade

Red Lands Salad

Radish, Pickled Onion, Arugula, Greens, White Balsamic Vinaigrette 

Asparagus & Manchego

Torched, Truffle Oil 

Cayo Hueso Bouillabaisse 

Ocean to table, Lobster, Shrimp, Fish, Aromatic Tomato Based Broth

Caromello Flan Brulee 

Carmel custard bruleed and topped with fresh berries

 www.Keywestpersonalchef.com

Conch Salad is Back!

Throughout South America and the Caribbean one can find many variations and methods for making ceviche. My favorite way to make it I found in the Bahamas. Fresh Citrus juices, lemon, lime and orange; onion, tomato, peppers, and scotch bonnet are the natural fresh ingredients found in the Bahamas style conch salad (ceviche).

As you cross over the bridge heading from Pleasure Island into Nassau you will find several waterside markets serving some amazing ceviche. At those markets it is prepared to order, fresh and delicious. They simply reach a gaff into the water and pull up a string of conchs as they need them.

It is the perfect treat for us here in the Keys when we head out to enjoy a day out at in the Marquesas, Boca Grande, or Woman Key.

We prepare our ceviche ingredients at home and then add our freshly chopped catch once we’re out there and enjoy it on the beach. Of course, harvesting conch is not legal here in the Keys so we substitute fish and it is just as good. Sunshine, a cold beverage, sandy feet, and a big bowl of ceviche is one of the great ways we spend our time in Key West!

Conch Salad  or  Ceviche

• 1 pound conch or other white fish

• (snapper, dolphin, snook, hogfish, cero mackerel)

• 1 large yellow onion diced

• 1 green pepper diced

• 1 tomato diced

• 3 oranges juiced

• 2 lemons juiced

• 2 limes juiced

• 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

• ½ teaspoon garlic

• Sea salt to taste

• Fresh ground pepper to taste

• Minced Scotch bonnet to taste (extremely spicy so be careful)

• ¼ peeled and diced cucumber (optional)

• Add a little cilantro if you like, I do 

Mix all ingredients let stand for 15 minutes and enjoy
To book Key West Personal Chef for an authentic, unforgettable Island Style Meal prepared in your home or vacation rental, visit our website www.keywestpersonalchef.com  

Fire Roasted Dolphin

The sun is scorching and the dolphins are running.  Not our lovable marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises but the delicious mahi mahi – also known as dorado in the Spanish speaking countries.

I wish I had a great story of catching a record breaking bull dolphin (male of the species) but I don’t!  I think the few times that I went out for dolphin we cruised around looking for weed lines out past the reef. We would troll for hours searching for random debris floating in the water.  I think a lot of the time I was looking more for a square grouper than anything else. We usually ended up just catching a buzz rather than that dolphin I always hear people boasting and bragging about. Truthfully it’s pretty embarrassing being born and raised here and not ever caught a dolphin. Some friends like to tell me “your mamma never let you out the backcountry!” They even went as far as to not invite me to go with them because they would not catch any dolphin when I was in the boat.

One thing that is for sure is that I have cooked more dolphin than there are chickens running around Key West. It’s hard to walk into almost any restaurant in the Florida Keys or maybe even all Florida without seeing dolphin on the menu – served from blackened to fried or grilled on sandwiches.  Topped with some ridiculous fruit salsa or mango burr blanc.  I think I get a little irate when I see those dishes because I only had to prepare it for ten of my culinary years. One chef even went as far as to say it was “Key West Cuisine”. Well I guess that chef was a tremendous revolutionary in the culinary field! Hey, the bottom line is, that’s what sells. Maybe that’s why I’m here, to make sure I pass on the knowledge of true Key West cooking and the heritage of the Conch Republic cuisine.

Often as a child I remember my father firing up the grill on the weekend. Some nicely cleaned dolphin simply seasoned with salt, pepper and olive oil along with whole green peppers and onion slices seasoned the same way. As the Heineken was flowing he would often douse the grill creating a beer steam of fresh seafood, onion, peppers, and charcoal.  It would fill the air! I can still smell it to this day – in my opinion, the best way to eat dolphin by far.

Fire Roasted Dolphin

• 1 1/2 # dolphin cut in 6oz portions
• 1 red pepper whole
• ½ inch sliced large yellow onion
• 1 leek split in ½ long ways washed
• Olive oil
• Fresh ground black pepper to taste
• Kosher or sea salt to taste
• 1 cup white wine or beer (whatever you’re drinking)
• 5 butter chunks

Season fish and veggies with salt, pepper, and olive oil. Once the grill is hot (key to cooking to perfection), place your vegetables first because they take the longest to cook. Turn veggies as needed to prevent overcooking then place your fish on the grill. Leave on for roughly three minutes and flip once. Cook for two more minutes and douse fish and veggies with wine or beer, cook one more minute then pull off the grill. Be careful not to overcook.

The dolphin becomes very dry when overcooked. Finish by rubbing butter chunks on each filet.

“Tip from the chef” – when cleaning dolphin filets be sure to cut the skin off rather than peeling it off.  When you peel the skin off a tough sinew is left behind and is chewy when cooked.  Also make sure to cut out all dark pieces of the blood line for a cleaner tasting filet.  Hope you all enjoy

Chef Martin Liz

www.keywestpersonalchef

Living Your Passion

If you are living your passion can the quality of your life be questioned?

It is a good question that many should stop to think about. My passion is the ocean, fishing, relaxing, the art of cooking, eating, good beverage; all in the company of friends and family.

I was born and raised a Key West Conch (Key West native) and left to the mainland looking for a better life only to eventually return to what I love. There is a belief of the Conchs that anyone who catches island fever and leaves will soon return.

I have worked in restaurants in Key West and other parts of Central and South Florida since the age of fifteen. I also left the kitchen once or twice only to return to my passion – creating and enjoying great food.

Key West provides all to be desired; great boating, island beaches, and a beautiful coral reef great for spearfishing and diving. Out past the reef there is amazing sportfishing where record size fish are just waiting to be caught.

You can spend the day on the ocean and provide dinner for days with all the many species of fish, crab, lobster, and shrimp. When I was a boy riding my bike with friends, there were fruit trees all over town that provided us with all we needed for a day. Sour sops, sapodillas, mango, avocado, Spanish limes, multiple types of peppers and tomatoes. All of these and more grow abundantly on the island. So when I say Key West provides all to be desired, from an island fever Conch boy I mean it. So am I living my passion? I think so!

Guava Sherry Glazed Tuna

Guava Sherry Glaze:

• 1 yellow onion diced small
• 1 table spoon chopped garlic
• 1 small can guava shells  or 3 fresh guavas small dice
• 2 cups sherry wine
• 2 table spoons honey
• 1 cup water
• Sea salt and pepper to taste

In a hot small sized pot add your onions and garlic.

Sauté onions and garlic in a small pot with olive oil until soft onions will turn transparent.

Once onions are transparent turn the burner to a medium heat and add guava and sauté for about 20 seconds to caramelize natural sugars.

Once guava is caramelized add sea salt, pepper, honey, water and sherry wine and continue to cook on medium heat until liquid has reduced by half.

If you have a food processor you can puree the sauce until smooth but it is not necessary.

Tuna:

• 6 oz portions of fresh tuna
• Sea salt and pepper
• Olive oil
• Fresh cilantro leaves

Heat a sauté pan until hot.

Season the tuna loin portion with sea salt, and black pepper. Sear quickly on each side until you reach desired temperature. Once cooked slice very thin and
drizzle with guava glaze. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves. Hope you enjoy!

The Conch Republic

The Conch Republic

Conch is a long time favorite seafood of Key Westers. When England began enforcing taxes on the Bahamas, many Bahamians left for the Florida Keys and said we would rather live in the Keys and eat conch than pay your taxes. So goes one of the many stories of how the Florida Keys became populated. The marine gastropod mollusk “conch” was not a very desirable food in those days, but now it’s a delicacy and has almost been fished to extinction.

There are many species of conch, but the most sought after is the endangered Queen Conch. We are no longer able to harvest this conch in Monroe County. It was banned to commercial harvesting in 1975 in the Keys and banned for recreational fishermen in 1986. Now The United States Secretary Of Commerce is being asked to put Conch on the endangered species list witch will ban the importing of conch all together. Conch harvesting countries will suffer a profound economic impact by the banning of the strombus gigis (Queen conch) and another Key West tradition in food will be lost. Much like the overfishing of sea turtle, the overfishing of conch will only be a memory to those who once got to taste and enjoy.

The hardest thing for me will be when I am out relaxing somewhere on our beautiful islands and I look down and see dozens of great tasting conchs in the turtle grass and I will not be able to eat them! I will remember fondly eating them fresh while we were out on the boat, just washed in ocean water with a squeeze of key lime and washing it down with a cold beer. I will miss fresh made conch salad, fried conch, conch chowder, conch stew, and the Key West favorite – conch fritters. How will I resist not reaching down and cracking one open, cleaning it, chopping it up and enjoying that last piece of conch I will never eat again! I am not sure! I guess I will just enjoy them while I can.

Conch Fritters

• 4lbs conch meat freshly ground
• 1 large yellow onion, finely diced
• 1 large green pepper, finely diced
• 2 tablespoons fresh chopped garlic
• 1 bottle of Budweiser beer
• 4 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 3 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning
• 3 eggs
• Salt and pepper to taste

Heat a sauté pan and sauté onion, green pepper, garlic, and Old Bay until onions and green peppers are soft. Put the vegetables in a large mixing bowl and add the Budweiser to chill the vegetables down. After the vegetables are chilled add eggs, flour, baking powder and conch. Season the conch fritter batter to taste with salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly until all ingredients are evenly mixed.

Fry by the spoonful at 325 degrees until they float, about 4 to 5 minutes.

• This will be a pretty big batch of fritters so make them on a Sunday and invite your friends and family over to watch football. I am sure the fritters will not last long! Hope you all enjoy!

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