West Indies Salad

Chef Danny Trace

A salad with tropical fruits and fresh lump Louisiana crabmeat.

Ingredients

Salad

1/2 yellow onion, finely diced
1 pound Louisiana jumbo lump crabmeat, picked for shells
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup ice water
3/4 cup white vinegar
1 bunch lolla rosa lettuce
1 bunch red oak lettuce
1 bunch arugula
1 mango, sliced into thin ribbons
1 papaya, diced
1 heart of palm, julienne
dressing, to taste (recipe follows)

Dressing

1/2 cup cane molasses
1/4 cup Louisiana cane vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil blend
cayenne pepper, to taste
salt, to taste

Directions

Salad

Layer half the onions in a small plastic container, place crabmeat on top, and layer remaining onions. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Slowly pour ice water, then vinegar on top. Do not mix! Marinate 24 hours.
Drain and mix the crab and onion before serving on top of the lolla rosa, red oak, arugula, mango, papaya, and heart of palm.

Dressing

In a blender or food processor, pour the molasses and vinegar in first.
With the machine running slowly, drizzle in the olive oil, emulsifying the oil into everything else, adjust seasonings to taste.

Chef’s Note: You may garnish with sweet potato chips (peel sweet potato and fry at 300ºF until crispy), plantain chips (same as sweet potato chips), orcoconut chips (slice fresh coconut very thin and bake at 225ºF until crispy).

Show off your culinary skills. Share pictures of your finished dish on social media and tag them with #LouisianaSeafood!