Conch Salad

3 sticks celery, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 small Bermuda onion, chopped
4 large cloves garlic, minced
5 to 6 green-onion tops, minced
1 3/4 pounds white conch, sliced very thin
Juice of 8 limes
1/4 cup olive oil
4 ounces red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Matouk’s West Indian Hot Sauce (hot!)

Toss raw vegetables together with sliced conch (semifrozen conch slices easily on a meat slicer or with a very sharp knife). Add lime juice and toss again. Pour olive oil, vinegar, and hot sauce over salad, and work through with fingers. Press vegetables down into liquid, and refrigerate at least 1 hour (the longer the better). Toss again and serve.

From “The Calypso Kitchen,” originally featured in Domain, Summer 1988