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