---
title: "Chilean Conger Eel — Homemade Congrio en Salsa Margarita Recipe"
description: "A delicious recipe for Chilean conger eel and seafood in white sauce or Margarita sauce, ideal for sharing an entertaining and flavorful dish to enjoy on any occasion."
url: https://www.chileanfoodrecipes.com/recipe-for-conger-eel-in-margarita-sauce/
date: 2024-02-08
modified: 2026-06-30
author: "Carlos Uhart M."
image: https://www.chileanfoodrecipes.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Chilean-Conger-Eel-in-Margarita-Sauce-Recipe.jpg
categories: ["Main Dishes"]
tags: ["Main Dishes"]
type: post
lang: en
---

# Chilean Conger Eel — Homemade Congrio en Salsa Margarita Recipe

[Versión en Español](https://comidaschilenas.com/congrio-margarita/)

![Chilean Conger Eel in Margarita Sauce Recipe](https://www.chileanfoodrecipes.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Chilean-Conger-Eel-in-Margarita-Sauce-Recipe.jpg)*Chilean Conger Eel in Margarita Sauce Recipe*

Chilean conger eel in Margarita sauce — congrio en salsa Margarita — is a coastal classic: conger eel medallions baked in white wine with onion and butter, then blanketed in a creamy seafood white sauce of mussels, langoustines, and sea urchins, ready in 50 minutes. A celebration dish that showcases the finest products of the Chilean coast, each serving delivers around 350 calories and the layered ocean flavors that make this preparation unforgettable.

## How to Make Conger Eel in Margarita Sauce?

Congrio en salsa Margarita brings together some of the best seafood products of Chile: conger eel, mussels, sea urchins, and langoustines, combined with Chilean white wine, milk, and butter. The key technique is baking the conger eel first in white wine to build flavor and produce a cooking juice that is then incorporated into the Margarita sauce, creating a unified flavor profile between the fish and its accompaniment.

## Nutritional Information

Each serving of Chilean conger eel in Margarita sauce contains approximately 350 calories, 12 g of carbohydrates, 18 g of fats, 38 g of protein, 1 g of fiber, and 700 mg of sodium.

## Conger Eel in Margarita Sauce Recipe

**Preparation:** 20 minutes

**Cooking:** 30 minutes

**Servings:** 6 people

### Ingredients

- 1 kg cooked mussels
- 6 fresh conger eel medallions
- 240 ml milk
- 120 ml white wine
- 100 g butter, diced
- 1 onion, sliced into feathers
- 1 tablespoon flour
- ½ cup langoustine tails
- ½ cup cooked sea urchins
- Salt
- Pepper

### Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F) for at least 10 minutes.
2. Place the conger eel medallions in a large ovenproof dish and pour the white wine over them. Season with salt and pepper to taste, cover with the sliced onion and butter in small pieces.
3. Bake the conger eel medallions in the preheated oven for about 10 to 15 minutes and keep warm. Reserve the cooking juices from the dish.
4. In a medium saucepan, prepare the Margarita sauce: melt a tablespoon of butter, add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly, season with salt and pepper to taste, and add the mussels, langoustines, and cooked sea urchins. Adjust seasoning and simmer for about 2 minutes over low heat, adding some of the reserved fish cooking juice to homogenize and intensify the flavor.
5. Remove the fish from the oven, place it on a serving dish, and pour the seafood white sauce over it.
6. Serve immediately, accompanied by a glass of Chilean white wine.

## Additional Tips

### Bake the conger eel first, then make the sauce — timing prevents overcooking the fish

Conger eel is a delicate fish that becomes rubbery and dry if overcooked. Baking the medallions for exactly 10 to 15 minutes at 180°C — just until the flesh turns opaque and begins to flake at the thickest point — allows it to stay moist. The subsequent Margarita sauce preparation takes only 5 minutes, and the fish rests in the warm dish during this time. Do not return the fish to heat once the sauce is ready — simply pour the hot sauce over it at the table, which finishes the dish without further cooking.

### Add sea urchins at the very end of the sauce — they become bitter when overcooked

Sea urchin (erizo) is one of the most heat-sensitive seafoods: even brief overexposure to heat concentrates its iodine compounds and produces a sharp, bitter, metallic taste. Add the sea urchins in the final 30 seconds of sauce preparation — just enough to warm them through without cooking them further. If the sauce needs additional simmering or adjustment, remove the urchins, finish the sauce, then add them back before serving.

### Use a dry Chilean white wine — avoid sweet wines or those with heavy oak

The white wine is used both to bake the fish and to build the flavor base of the sauce. A dry Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay with good acidity complements the sweetness of the crab and urchin while cutting through the richness of the butter. A sweet wine produces an unbalanced, cloying sauce. A heavily oaked Chardonnay imparts a buttery-woody note that clashes with the delicate seafood flavors. A 5 to 10 USD bottle of Chilean Sauvignon Blanc is the ideal choice.

| Ingredient | Substitution and result |
| --- | --- |
| Conger eel (congrio) | Halibut or monkfish — similar firm, white, non-flaking flesh; same cooking time |
| Sea urchins | Extra mussels or langoustines — omit urchin if unavailable; sauce still excellent |
| Langoustine tails | Large shrimp — same technique; reduce cooking time by 1 minute |
| White wine | Dry white vermouth (use half the quantity) — more aromatic; slightly more complex |

## Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

### 1. What is Chilean conger eel (congrio)?

Chilean conger eel — congrio — is not a true eel but a marine fish of the family Ophidiidae, found in the cold Pacific waters off the Chilean coast. The three main commercial species are congrio negro (Genypterus maculatus), congrio colorado (Genypterus chilensis), and congrio dorado (Genypterus blacodes). All three have firm, white, flavourful flesh with few bones, making congrio one of the most prized and versatile fish in Chilean cooking. Pablo Neruda dedicated an ode to conger eel soup (oda al caldillo de congrio), further cementing its status as an icon of Chilean gastronomy.

### 2. What is Margarita sauce and where does the name come from?

Margarita sauce in Chilean cooking is a seafood-enriched white sauce — a béchamel base combined with mussels, langoustines, and sea urchins, often finished with white wine. The name is shared with the famous Italian pizza Margherita, which was also said to be created in honor of Queen Margherita of Savoy in the 19th century. However, the Chilean Margarita sauce is a completely independent preparation from the pizza — the name coincidence reflects the popularity of the queen’s name across European and Latin American cultures at the time.

### 3. Can I make this dish without sea urchins?

Yes — sea urchins are the most difficult ingredient to source outside Chile and can be omitted without ruining the dish. Increase the mussels and langoustines by 50 g each to compensate for the volume. The result will be an excellent white seafood sauce without the specific iodine-rich, oceanic character that sea urchins add. A small amount of good-quality bottled clam juice added to the sauce can partially replicate the depth of flavor that sea urchins provide.

### 4. What side dishes pair best with conger eel in Margarita sauce?

The most traditional Chilean accompaniment is steamed white rice, which absorbs the Margarita sauce and balances the richness of the seafood. Boiled potatoes or mashed potato are equally classic and more substantial. A simple green salad dressed with lemon and olive oil provides freshness against the rich sauce. In coastal Chilean restaurants, the dish is often accompanied by a glass of very cold dry white wine — the same variety used in the recipe — making the pairing complete.

## What Is Congrio en Salsa Margarita?

Congrio en salsa Margarita is a Chilean baked seafood preparation in which conger eel medallions are first baked in white wine and butter, then blanketed in a rich white seafood sauce (Margarita sauce) containing mussels, langoustines, and sea urchins. It is one of the classic preparations of Chilean coastal cuisine, served in seafood restaurants and prepared in homes along the Chilean coast as a celebration dish for special occasions. The dish showcases the extraordinary biodiversity of the Chilean Pacific coast — conger eel, bivalve mussels, crustacean langoustines, and sea urchins combined in a single preparation that represents the richness of Chilean seafood culture.

## History of Congrio in Chilean Cuisine

Conger eel has been central to Chilean seafood culture since pre-Columbian times — indigenous coastal peoples of Chile consumed it extensively, and it appears in archaeological records of coastal settlements along the Pacific. The Spanish colonizers found congrio in the markets of Santiago and incorporated it into colonial Chilean cooking, where it became a staple of coastal diet and trade. The ode to conger eel soup — Oda al Caldillo de Congrio — written by Nobel Prize-winning Chilean poet Pablo Neruda is perhaps the most famous culinary poem in Latin American literature, describing the preparation of conger eel soup with such sensory precision that it has become a cultural touchstone for Chilean gastronomy. The Margarita sauce preparation, combining the fish with multiple Chilean shellfish in a white wine sauce, represents the evolution of congrio from simple stewed preparations to the more elaborate restaurant cooking that developed during the 20th century in Chilean coastal cities.

## Did You Know?

The Margarita sauce takes its name from a tradition in 19th century European cuisine of naming preparations after royalty and notable figures. The Chilean Margarita sauce shares its name with the famous Pizza Margherita — both said to honor Queen Margherita of Savoy — though they are entirely independent preparations from different culinary traditions. In Chilean coastal restaurants, congrio en salsa Margarita remains one of the most ordered dishes when a special occasion calls for celebrating the best of what the Pacific Ocean provides.

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