Sound to Table: Conch conch conch!!!

I was doing my daily swim in the Long Island Sound in Southold when  I saw a lot of big conch shells on the bottom. I told my nanny, Adelphine, who's a fantastic cook from St. Vincent (a Caribbean island) and she was excited to make something with them. The next day the dive was on. I found over 12 large conch and we took them home.

Adelphine got out the hammer and starting banging. In order to get the conch out you basically need to destroy the shell and pull those stubborn little sea snails out. I always find it sad to kill something, no matter how prehistoric...

Finally after much banging and pulling, cleaning and cutting, the conch was ready to cook. We put it with garlic and white wine last night. Today we'll try conch soup with corn, carrots and chayote.