Making ceviche at home might be one of my new favorite activities.
Now, that I’ve finally discovered a fresh seafood market just minutes away… I mean, come on…we only live in the boating capital of the world. You’d think someone would have had this covered sooner.
This place is seriously awesome, and if you happen to live in Fort Lauderdale, I highly recommend it. Not only do they have an incredible selection of fresh seafood, they’ll even cook it for you, if you ask! Now that doesn’t really interest me, because you know I want to take it home and soak it in a big bowl of citrus to make ceviche…but, it’s a nice idea, don’t you think? And if all of that wasn’t enough, this place even sells baguettes from my favorite Las Olas bakery - making it a total and complete one-stop shop. Boom!
So…ceviche…you either love it or hate it. Kind of the same deal with seafood in general. I’m going to assume you love it, because you’re here, reading a post about ceviche. If you’ve never made it at home, you should! The only caveat is, you do need to have access to very fresh, high-quality seafood. I’m wondering now, how easy that is depending on where you live. After all, I’ve only just discovered my own seafood haven!
Well, I hope it’s not too difficult. I also hope that your seafood market peeps will be kind enough (I’m sure they will) to cut it up nicely for you. Mine did, and though I still needed to do a bit more when I got home, it was easy-peasy at that point. From there, you’re almost done – a little juicing, a little veggie prep…toss it into a bowl! Let it sit! Add more veggies! And a little seasoning!
Yipee! Ceviche!
Serve it on tortilla chips, and it’s a party!
Frontera Ceviche
Adapted from Rick Bayless
{I love the olives in this recipe, and I equally love the jícama. If you’ve never worked with it before – guess what? I hadn’t either! Just peel it with a vegetable peeler. I was able to get decent fresh tomatoes, probably something to do with the whole “I live in Florida” thing, but if you try it with sun-dried tomatoes, definitely let me know how it comes out}
- 1 pound “sashimi-quality” skinless meaty ocean fish fillet, cut into 1/2-inch cubes {I used equal portions of halibut, snapper, and bass}
- 1 1/2 cups fresh lime juice
- 1 small white onion, chopped
- 2 or 3 serrano chiles (or 1 large jalapeño), chopped
- 1/4 cup pitted green olives, preferably manzanillos
- 1 large ripe tomato, chopped (or 1/4 cup soft sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped)
- 1/4 small jícama, chopped
- 1/4 cup (loosely packed) chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Kosher or sea salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
“Cook” the fish in the lime juice. In a large stainless steel or glass bowl, combine the fish, lime juice and onion. The fish should float freely in the juice; if not, add a little more. Cover and refrigerate until the fish is as “done” as you like: An hour or so for medium-rare, 3 to 4 hours for “cooked” all the way through. Tip off the lime juice—sad to say that it’s fishy tasting at this point and can’t be easily used for any other preparation.
Flavor the ceviche. In a mini food processor, process the green chile and olives until finely chopped (or finely chop by hand). Add to the fish along with the tomato, jícama, cilantro, and olive oil. Stir well, then season with salt (usually about a scant teaspoon) and sugar. Refrigerate until ready to serve — preferably no longer than an hour or two.
