Ceviche

Ceviche

NY Times

Light and bright, vibrant and punchy, ceviche involves marinating raw seafood in citrus juice until it becomes opaque and toothsome. You’ll find many variations of the dish in coastal Latin America made with ingredients like coconut milk, ketchup and green olives. This colorful rendition is one style popular in Mexico, but if you leave out the tomatoes, cucumber and avocado, you’ll get a dish that’s common in Peru, the birthplace of ceviche. Whatever version you make, start with fish that’s as fresh as possible; ask your fishmonger what’s best for ceviche that day, and to make shrimp ceviche, see Tip.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

1 pound very fresh, firm fish, such as bass, snapper or fluke, skin removed, cut into ½-inch pieces

Salt

½ cup fresh lime juice (from 4 juicy limes)

2 medium tomatoes, cut into ½-inch pieces

2 Persian or mini seedless cucumbers, cut into ¼-inch pieces

¼ medium red onion, coarsely chopped and rinsed under cold water

2 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped

1 large avocado

¼ cup chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems

Tortilla, plantain or sweet potato chips; tostadas; or Saltines, for serving

In a wide, shallow bowl, toss the fish with 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt or a heaping ½ teaspoon fine sea salt until dissolved. Add the lime juice and stir to coat. Add the tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, jalapeños and a pinch of salt; stir to combine.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 10 to 45 minutes, stirring about every 5 minutes. This timing is dependent on preference; the longer you leave the fish in the citrus, the more “cooked” and opaque it will be (longer than 45 minutes could end up dry and chewy, like a well-done steak), whereas a shorter marinade will result in fish that is opaque and firm on the outside and soft and juicy inside, like a medium-rare steak.

When ready to serve, remove the pit from the avocado and dice into ½-inch pieces. Add the avocado to the ceviche and gently stir to coat in the lime juice, then drain off the liquid from the bowl. Stir in the cilantro and season to taste with salt. Serve spooned onto tortilla, plantain or sweet potato chips, tostadas, or Saltines.

Tip: For shrimp ceviche, it’s advisable to par-cook the shrimp before marinating it in lime juice. Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil, then turn off the heat. Add 1 pound large, peeled and deveined shrimp, and cook in the hot water until just opaque, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board until cool enough to handle, then coarsely chop and proceed with the recipe.

* I recommend marinating the fish separate from the veggies and draining the lime juice used to cook it. You'll notice this lime juice will turn milky and will have a stronger fishy flavor. You can then add the fish to the veggie mixture, add more lime toss well, and let the flavors marinate and come together for a few minutes before serving. This makes all the flavors in your ceviche shine and avoids a fishy sauce. Also, please do not use jalapeños (smh). Serranos! Always serranos!

*OMG, I do exactly this - draining and replacing the lime juice and I posted it above. It's def the way to go. I also temper the onion by rinsing it in hot water so it becomes sweeter. Sometimes I add a tablespoon of red wine vinegar to reach the right level of acidity.