In the Caribbean, they are called conch, and we call them whelk around the waters of Cape Cod. And yes, they are edible. Unlike other shellfish, no license is required to harvest them. Preparing the whelk takes some extra time, but the experience is worth the effort. Not knowing much about whelk, I contacted Jake Angelo, a commercial fisherman and owner of the Barnstable Seafood Company. “Whelks are large carnivorous scavengers that also prey on shellfish. They are caught with traps, a.k.a. ‘whelk pots,’ as well as by draggers. The prime season for whelk fishing is the spring, when they wake up from hibernation with empty stomachs, and the fall, when they try to pack on calories for the winter. In July and August, the female whelk are busy laying egg cases which takes them two weeks to lay! In our Cape Cod ports, whelk is landed almost daily, nine months a year. However, most are exported or sold domestically in Asian, Greek, Portuguese, and Italian-influenced markets. Ask for whelk if you don’t see it in your local fish market!”
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- A dash of your favorite hot sauce
- 1 lime, zest and juice
- 2 tablespoons freshly-chopped cilantro
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1½ cup ground whelk
- ¾ cup cooked quinoa
- ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
- Coconut oil for frying
- A spicy sauce for serving (below)
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon plain yogurt
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- Hot sauce to taste
- 1 to 2 tablespoons snipped chives
Preparation
Scrub the whelk to clean the shell, rinsing off the sand. If using more than one, place them in a large saucepan with one cup of dry white wine, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, then simmer and cook for 25 to 30 minutes. After they are cooked, place them in a bowl under cold running water to cool them. Pick the whelk out of its shell, cut off the innards – which are the soft intestines – and cut off the black around the neck of the whelk and discard, leaving only the white meat. At this point, I freeze the meat until I am ready to use it (when ready, remove from freezer and thaw). Pound the meat with the back of a cleaver or wooden mallet (I use a stainless-steel meat pounder I bought in Italy) to tenderize the meat. Be careful not to pulverize or mash it. Next, run the meat through a hand grinder, or mince finely with a large sharp chef’s knife.
Mix the egg, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire, hot sauce, juice, zest of the lime, cilantro, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl until well combined.
Fold in the ground whelk, and quinoa, and form into six cakes.
Put 2 to 3 tablespoons of the coconut oil in a large iron skillet and heat over medium-high heat.
Add the whelk cakes and cook in batches until golden brown, about 3 to 5 minutes per side.
Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl until well combined and serve with the cakes.
