Queen Conch

Queen Conch (pronounced “Konk”) is a common seafood throughout the Caribbean and Florida Keys. Harvesting Queen Conch is prohibited in the Florida Keys so any conch you buy or eat in a restaurant is imported.

Good conch should be white with pink and orange edges. Avoid conch with a grayish color. Like other seafood, conch should not smell fishy. If there are any dark pieces of skin, trim them off. Because of its firm texture, conch needs to be tenderized before being cooked. This can be accomplished by placing the meat between pieces of plastic wrap and giving it a good pounding with a mallet. How much is too much? Don’t beat it to a pulp — smooth and flatten it to the desired thickness.

When it comes to cooking conch, treat it like squid: either barely cook it, or cook the heck out of it. After heating briefly, conch will begin to toughen until essentially inedible. However, after being cooked for a while (simmered for about an hour in a stew, for example) the conch will come back, tender again.