Bol Limeno Cartagena

Bol limeno is a traditional soup of Cartagena and the Caribbean coast, made from sea snails (caracol) cooked in coconut milk with root vegetables, plantain and spices. The dish reflects the Afro-Colombian coastal tradition, combining African cooking methods (coconut milk, slow simmering) with Caribbean ingredients. The sea snails are cleaned thoroughly, boiled to tenderise them, then simmered in a coconut milk broth with diced yam, green plantain, onion, garlic, sweet pepper and coriander. The broth is rich and briny, the snails chewy. Once a common street food in Cartagena's Getsemaní neighborhood, bol limeno is now increasingly rare as sea snail populations decline.

A rich, briny, coconut-scented broth with chewy pieces of sea snail, soft yam and plantain. The coconut milk rounds the saltiness of the sea snail. Eaten with a squeeze of lime and hot sauce.

The technique involves cleaning and tenderising the snails, then a long simmer in coconut milk. The sea snails are removed from their shells, cleaned of the digestive tract, and pounded lightly. They are boiled separately for 30 minutes to tenderise, then drained. A base of onion, garlic and sweet pepper is fried in oil, coconut milk and water added, and the snails, diced yam, diced green plantain and spices (cumin, black pepper, coriander) are simmered together for 45 minutes. The long cooking tenderises the snails and allows the coconut milk to permeate the broth. The soup is finished with fresh coriander and lime.