Conch Fritters

For the Fritters

• 1 ½ - 2 lbs, conch meat, ground
• ½ green bell pepper, diced fine
• ½ red bell pepper, diced fine
• ½ yellow bell pepper, diced fine
• ½ white onion, diced fine
• 1 celery rib, finely sliced
• 1 teaspoon jalapeño chile, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp Jamaican jerk seasoning
• Water
• Vegetable oil for frying

For the Dipping Sauce

• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup lime juice
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the dipping sauce ingredients.
2. Finely mince or grind the conch meat.
3. Sift the flour over the bowl containing the ground conch meat. Stir until the flour coats all of the meat.
4. Gently fold in the chopped vegetables and the herbs, then add some water. You want just enough to bind it all together but not so much that the batter becomes runny. Here's what it ought to look like:
5. Heat up about two inches of oil in a stockpot. It's ready when it bubbles up around the non-stirring end of a wooden spoon.
6. Scoop up some of the fritter batter and flatten it out into the spoon. The fritters need be a little thin because you don't want them to end up burned on the outside and raw in the middle. These aren't sushi fritters.
7. Drop them into the oil. Flip them once during cooking so they will cook evenly.
8. When they are a nice golden color on both sides take them out and drain them on a paper towel. Serve hot with the dipping sauce.