Ingredients
Soup
- 600 gcleaned conch meat (caracol), pounded thin and cut into 2 cm pieces
- juice of 2 limes
- 3 tbspcoconut oil
- 1large onion, finely chopped
- 1red pepper, diced
- 6garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 tbspculantro (recao) leaves, chopped, or coriander
- 1 tspground cumin
- 1 tspachiote powder
- 800 mlcoconut milk, from 2 fresh coconuts if possible
- 500 mlwater
- 400 gyuca (cassava), peeled and cut in 4 cm lengths
- 1green plantain, peeled and sliced 2 cm thick
- 2carrots, sliced
- 1whole habanero, pierced
- salt and black pepper
To serve
- lime wedges
- fried green plantain slices (tajadas)
- corn tortillas
Directions
- Pound the conch between sheets of plastic with a mallet until it is limp and thin. Untenderised conch stays rubbery no matter how long it cooks.
- Rub the conch with lime juice and a little salt, rinse and drain.
- Warm the coconut oil in a heavy pot and sweat the onion, pepper and garlic over medium heat for 8 minutes without colouring, then stir in the cumin and achiote for 30 seconds.
- Add the water, yuca, plantain and carrot and simmer 20 minutes until the yuca is nearly tender and a fork slides in with slight resistance.
- Pour in the coconut milk, add the pierced habanero and the culantro, and bring to a bare simmer. Do not boil hard from here or the coconut milk will split into oil and curds.
- Slide in the conch and cook gently for exactly 8–10 minutes, until it turns opaque and springs back to the finger. Overcooked conch tightens like an eraser.
- Remove the habanero, season with salt and plenty of black pepper, and let the pot stand 5 minutes off the heat.
- Ladle into deep bowls with a piece of each vegetable, and serve with tajadas, lime and warm tortillas.
Technique
- This is a Garifuna dish from the Caribbean coast around Trujillo and La Ceiba, cooked in fresh coconut milk pressed from grated flesh; tinned milk works but is sweeter and thinner in flavour.
- There are only two safe windows for conch: under 10 minutes or over 60. Anything between leaves it tough.
- Banda Blanca’s 1991 punta hit made the soup nationally famous, but the recipe is far older than the song.
Substitutions
- No conch: whelk, abalone or large clams give a similar chew. At a push, use squid, added in the last 4 minutes.
- Yuca can be replaced by malanga or waxy potato, though potato thickens the broth more.
Variations
- Some cooks add a handful of small crabs or a piece of white sea fish to the pot for a fuller seafood soup.
- In Roatan the soup is often finished with a splash of coconut cream and served with cassava bread (ereba).
History
A Garifuna conch and coconut soup from the Caribbean coast, made famous worldwide by Banda Blanca’s 1991 punta hit of the same name.
Frequently asked questions
What is Sopa de caracol?
Sopa de caracol is a soup & stew from Honduras: conch simmered in coconut milk with yuca and spices. A Garifuna conch and coconut soup from the Caribbean coast, made famous worldwide by Banda Blanca’s 1991 punta hit of the same name.
How long does Sopa de caracol take to make?
Sopa de caracol takes 30 min of preparation and 50 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Sopa de caracol?
Yes, within limits. No conch: whelk, abalone or large clams give a similar chew. At a push, use squid, added in the last 4 minutes. Yuca can be replaced by malanga or waxy potato, though potato thickens the broth more.
What is the most important thing to get right in Sopa de caracol?
Pour in the coconut milk, add the pierced habanero and the culantro, and bring to a bare simmer. Do not boil hard from here or the coconut milk will split into oil and curds.
