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1
Tenderise and Chop the Conch
15 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Rinse the cleaned conch under cold water and trim off any dark skin or tough edge. Lay each piece on a board, cover with cling film, and pound firmly with a meat mallet on both sides until it is about 1 cm thick all over. Chop the pounded conch into small 1 cm pieces and set aside.
Frozen conch that has been thawed is already a little more tender, but pound it anyway — it is the single biggest difference between chewy and tender chowder.
Done when: The conch is evenly flattened to about 1 cm and cut into small, even pieces.
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2
Soften the Onion, Pepper and Celery
10 Mins
Medium heat, about 175°C (350°F)
Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion, green pepper and celery with a pinch of the salt and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often, until the onion turns soft and translucent. Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 more minute until fragrant, then add the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste and cook for 4 minutes more, stirring, until the paste darkens a shade and the tomatoes start to break down.
Let the tomato paste fry for the full few minutes — raw paste tastes tinny, while fried paste turns sweet and deep red.
Done when: The vegetables are soft, the onion is translucent, and the tomato paste has darkened and smells sweet.
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3
Build the Tomato Broth
5 Mins
Bring to a boil, 100°C (212°F)
Pour in the water and stir well, scraping the bottom of the pot to lift up any browned bits. Stir in the allspice, thyme, black pepper, bay leaf and the remaining salt, then bring the pot to a full boil.
Scrape the pot properly — those browned bits are free flavour that belongs in the broth, not stuck to the pot.
Done when: The broth is a uniform deep red and bubbling across the whole surface.
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4
Simmer the Conch and Potatoes
40 Mins
Gentle simmer, about 100°C (212°F)
Add the chopped conch, the diced potatoes and the diced carrots to the boiling broth. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer, cover the pot with the lid slightly ajar, and cook for 40 minutes, stirring now and then and topping up with a splash of hot water if the soup gets thicker than you like. The potatoes should be completely tender and the conch soft enough to bite through easily.
Keep it at a lazy simmer, not a hard rolling boil — hard boiling toughens the conch and breaks the potatoes to mush.
Done when: A potato cube crushes easily with a spoon, a piece of conch bites through without resistance, and the broth has thickened so it coats the spoon.
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5
Season with Lime and Rest the Chowder
10 Mins
Off the heat
Take the pot off the heat and fish out the bay leaf. Stir in the minced scotch bonnet and the fresh lime juice, then taste and adjust the salt — the lime should brighten the whole pot without making it sour. Let the chowder rest for 5 minutes so the flavours settle and the potato starch thickens the broth a little more.
Add the lime off the heat: boiling lime juice turns bitter and dulls the fresh flavour.
Done when: The soup tastes bright, warmly spiced and well salted, with a clear lime lift on the finish.
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6
Serve Hot with Johnny Cake
5 Mins
Serve hot, above 60°C (140°F)
Ladle the chowder into deep bowls, making sure every bowl gets a good share of conch, potato and carrot. Serve at once with warm johnny cake on the side for dunking, and put the pepper sherry and extra lime wedges on the table so everyone can season their own bowl.
Serve in deep bowls, not shallow ones — the chowder cools fast in a wide, shallow bowl.
Done when: Steaming hot bowls of thick red soup, with the vegetables and conch visible in every spoonful.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Ladle the thick red chowder into deep bowls while it is steaming hot, and serve with warm johnny cake, pepper sherry and lime wedges on the table.
Bahamas
45m
