Bahamian Conch Fritters
Bahamian Conch Fritters – An authentic Caribbean recipe for crispy and flavorful fritters made with fresh conch meat. Conch fritters are easy to fry at home and perfect to serve with your favorite dipping sauces as a snack or appetizer!
We love traveling to the Bahamas for relaxing fun in the sun. Along with enjoying the beaches, one of our favorite things about visiting the Caribbean is the incredible food!
And the snack that we absolutely just can’t get enough of are slightly crunchy, amazingly flavorful deep-fried Conch Fritters. Whenever we see them offered on a Bahamian menu we have to order a plate and try their version.
Although we get our fill on the islands, when we get back home the desire for tasty little crispy fritters comes back strong. So it was definitely time to create an authentic Conch Fritters recipe that can be made at the house when the craving hits!
Bahamian Conch Fritters
Even if you’ve never tried Conch Fritters before, the concept is probably familiar… The tasty, tender fried fritters are similar in size to hush puppies with a consistency that is like a soft luxurious crab cake. But instead of being made with a simple corn batter, they are filled with a delicious blend of chopped fresh conch, peppers, and vibrant spices.
Pro Tip: If you are ordering conch to make conch salad, buy another pound to make these irresistible seafood fritters!
Homemade Caribbean-style Conch Fritters are surprisingly easy to make; we even use a food processor for super quick prep. After all of the ingredients are minced together, flavorful beer is mixed in to create a rich batter that’s then scooped and deep-fried in oil. The result is a plateful of fritters that are ultra moist and zesty on the inside, and wonderfully crispy on the outside.
Make a batch of Conch Fritters and serve with your favorite seafood sauces to dip. They’re great as a hearty snack or party appetizer that will make you and your guests (almost) feel like you’re on an island vacation!
Ingredients You Need
Fresh conch meat can be a bit difficult to source, and I, therefore, recommend that you purchase it online and have it overnighted if not available locally. All of the other ingredients, however, are basic pantry staples that can easily be found at most grocery stores.
To make the best authentic Conch Fritters recipe you need:
- Conch meat – steaks or tenderized
- Veggies – seeded and chopped bell pepper, onion, and celery (also known as the Trinity in southern cooking)
- Habanero pepper – seeded
- All-purpose flour – the binder for the fritters
- Baking powder – gives the Conch Fritters a lighter consistency and not too dense
- Seasonings – dried thyme, salt, black pepper, paprika
- Mexican beer – or other light beer, or club soda
- Fry oil – vegetable or peanut are best
How to Make Conch Fritters from Scratch
This conch fritters recipe uses a deep frying method that requires a large, deep pot. It is also best to make with the help of a high-heat thermometer, like a candy thermometer, so that you get the oil to just the right temperature.
To make Conch Fritters, first set a large 6-8 quart saucepot over medium heat on the stovetop. Attach the cooking thermometer to the side and add the oil to the pot. Bring the temperature to 360 degrees F.
Meanwhile, set out a food processor. Cut the conch meat into large chunks, and pulse in the processor for a moment or two to chop into small pieces. Then add the seeded and roughly chopped bell pepper, chopped onion, chopped celery, and seeded habanero pepper.
Pulse to chop the conch and veggies into fine pieces.
Next, set out a mixing bowl and add the conch mixture. Stir in the flour, baking powder, thyme, salt, pepper, and paprika.
Mix the ingredients well.
Finally, mix in the beer (or club soda) to create a dense batter. The consistency should be similar to a hushpuppy or small crab cake mixture.
Get the Complete (Printable) Conch Fritters Recipe Below. Enjoy!
Once the oil is hot, use a 1 ½ tablespoon scoop (or a standard ice cream scoop) to portion the batter into balls. Gently and carefully drop the balls into the hot oil.
Scoop and fry 8-10 fritters at a time, for approximately 4-5 minutes each. You can use a spoon to gently move them if they start touching, but otherwise, they should fry undisturbed.
When done the fritters should be a deep golden-brown, but not burnt.
Set out a paper towel-lined plate to drain the fried Conch Fritters. Once the first batch is ready, use a skimmer to move them to the plate.
Cut one open to make sure it is cooked through, but still moist and slightly spongey. On the inside, it should look similar to the picture below…
Repeat the scooping and frying process with the remaining batter. You’ll likely need to work in a total of 4-5 batches.
When all of the Conch Fritters have been fried, serve warm with your preferred sauce and/or sides.
Tips & Tricks
- If you are a lover of spice, throw in the habanero pepper with the seeds, too! This will kick up the heat level!
- Can’t find habanero pepper? Substitute with a jalapeño pepper instead!
- Before frying up all of the conch fritters, fry just one or two in order to taste them and make sure that the mixture has enough salt and tastes exactly how you want it!
Frequently Asked Questions
These crispy snacks go well with several condiments. Serve Conch Fritters with homemade Remoulade Sauce, Tartar Sauce, Cocktail Sauce, or your favorite seafood sauce!
A conch is a large sea snail that is commonly found in the Caribbean near the Bahamas. It has a firm texture that is often compared with calamari. Once it is broken up in the food processor for this conch fritters recipe, it will have a chewy yet soft texture that is fried to perfection.
If you can’t find conch or don’t want to order it online, lobster meat is a great replacement. You could also use crab meat as a delicious yet slightly different variation!
They are definitely best when enjoyed right away straight out of the fry oil. But you can store them in an airtight container and keep them in the fridge for a day or so. Reheat them in the oven, deep fryer, or air fryer for a few minutes until warm and crispy again.
Feel free to use your favorite gluten-free all-purpose flour blend to make this seafood fritters recipe GF-friendly. But note that if the blend includes baking powder you can skip adding additional flour per the recipe. Also, be sure to use a gluten-free beer, or you can just use club soda.
Enjoy crunchy fried fritters with other Caribbean-inspired dishes, like these Caribbean Shrimp Burgers. Or serve alongside simple seafood mains like fresh steamed peeled shrimp or baked or grilled white fish.
Looking for More Fried Snack and Side Dish Recipes?
- Golden Pan Fried Potato Cakes
- Jalapeno Hushpuppies Recipe
- Vegetable Pakora with Kale
- Perfect Maryland Crab Cakes (Baked or Fried)
- Sweet Potato Falafel with Tzatziki Sauce
Bahamian Conch Fritters
Ingredients
- 1 pound conch meat steaks or tenderized
- 1 green bell pepper seeded and cut into chunks
- ¾ cup chopped onion
- ½ cup chopped celery
- 1 habanero pepper seeded
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ½ cup light Mexican beer or club soda
- 1 quart fry oil
Instructions
- Set a large 6-8 quart saucepot over medium heat. Attach a cooking thermometer to the side and add the oil to the pot. Bring the temperature to 360 degree F.
- Meanwhile, set out a food processor. Cut the conch meat into large chunks. Pulse to chop into small pieces. Then add the bell pepper, onion, celery, and habanero. Pulse to chop into fine pieces.
- Set out a mixing bowl. Add the conch mixture to the bowl. Then stir in the flour, baking powder, thyme, salt, pepper, and paprika. Mix well. Finally, mix in the beer to create a dense batter.
- Once the oil is hot, use a 1 ½ tablespoon scoop to portion the batter into balls. Gently drop the balls into the hot oil. Scoop and fry 8-10 fritters at a time, for approximately 4-5 minutes.
- Set out a paper towel lined plate to drain the dried conch fritters. Once the first batch is ready, use a skimmer to move them to the plate. Cut one open to make sure it is cooked through, but still moist. Repeat with the remaining batter in 4-5 batches. (The fritters should be dark brown, but not burnt.)
- Serve warm with a side of remoulade or tartar sauce.
Can you make a big batch of fritter mix and freeze to cook later?? I have 5 pounds of conch, I don’t want to use it all at once, nor all for fritters..
Hi Brandi,
Yes, you can do that! Be sure to portion it out into small containers before freezing, so you don’t have to thaw to separate it.
We love conch fritters and these are delicious! Thank you!
A great recipe! So soft on the inside with the perfect crunch on the outside!
I never knew that conch meat was something that we could eat, but once I tried this fritter recipe, I ended up loving this more than I thought I would! So delicious!
These were the absolute best! Love making these at home.