Go Back
+ servings
Print
Closeup of a marinated crabmeat salad

Mr. Bayley’s West Indies Salad

Our friend Chris Buckridge was kind enough to provide his recipe for Mr. Bayley's West Indies Salad, and I have left it as is, with Chris's personal notes, below.
Course Appetizer, Main Course, Salad
Cuisine American
Keyword West Indies Salad
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Chilling time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 15 minutes
Servings 8
Author Amanda

Ingredients

  • 1 med sweet white onion such as Vidalia, sliced first into wedges, then sliced as thinly as you can
  • 1 pound jumbo lump blue crabmeat
  • 4 ounces good-quality neutral-tasting vegetable oil I use Crisco Natural Blend Oil
  • 3 oz apple cider vinegar
  • 4 oz ice water as cold as you can get it
  • sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. Follow these directions to the letter! Spread half of the onion over the bottom of a large bowl.
  2. Cover with all of the gently separated crab lumps. (Be careful not to break up the lumps too much.)
  3. Add the remaining onion slivers, then top with sea salt and fresh pepper. (You’ll need less salt, and more pepper than you think.)
  4. Mix the oil, vinegar, & water in a separate bowl; whisk rapidly until incorporated (the ice cold water will inhibit complete emulsification of the liquid); and pour over the crab & onion mixture.
  5. Cover and marinate from 2 to 12 hours (the longer, the better).
  6. Toss lightly, and check seasoning before serving. Serve cold as a salad over a bed of greens, on crackers as an entree, or – the Buckridge’s favorite – over slices of very ripe tomato.

Recipe Notes

This simple, yet delicious seafood salad is the quintessential regional dish of the Mobile Bay and Lower Alabama Gulf Coast area. Invented by the late Bill Bayley, a local area restaurateur, many years ago, it should be prepared exactly as directed w/ careful layering, and is best when using the very freshest lump crab available (jumbo lump, if available) and the coldest ice water you can find. (I usually fill a small bowl w/ ice & water, and then leave it in the refrigerator for several hours before preparing. Don’t take it out until ready to use it; then replace the prepared salad immediately into the fridge until ready to serve.)