Scungili Salad is a southern Italian Christmas Eve tradition rich with flavor. It starts with white conch (scungili) pressure-cooked slowly with citrus. Marinated overnight with alliums, celery, fennel, olives and herbs, it’s a delight with a glass of chilled prosecco or a French 75 on the side.
What is Scungili Salad?
This popular Italian-American dish features scungilli, which are the meaty feet of the whelk sea snail. The scungilli are typically cooked, sliced, and marinated in a vinaigrette dressing made with olive oil, vinegar, garlic, and herbs. The salad is often served cold and garnished with fresh parsley or celery. Its unique texture and flavor has a slightly chewy consistency and a briny taste. While the recipe takes some patience it’s worth the result.
Scungili Salad Recipe
Serves 10
Salad Ingredients
- 3 lb white conch (scungili), cleaned
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 1 medium red onion, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large fennel bulb, trimmed and sliced thin
- 1/2 cup oil-cured olives
- 1/2 cup Castelvetrano olives
- 4 sweet or hot cherry peppers, diced
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 lemons, juiced
- ¼ cup kosher salt, divided
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
- 1 tsp dry oregano
- 1 lemon, halved
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 lime, halved
- 1 orange, halved
Instructions
- In a pressure cooker, add 3 pounds of conch and cover with water. Remove 2 Teaspoons of salt and reserve. Place all of the other salt in your pressure cooker pot with lemon, lime, orange and water to cover.
- Cook on medium high pressure for 1 hour. Allow pressure to decrease and remove conch from the pressure cooker. Allow to cool and slice in bite-size pieces.
- Combine with all of the other ingredients and allow to marinate overnight. Serve chilled.
Story by Susan Fleming Morgans / Recipe by Chef Gary Klinefelter and Chef Chris O’Brien/ Styling by Anna Franklin / Photography by Joey Kennedy
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