Ceviche can be a daunting dish to make. So many things can go wrong when you’re dealing with fish, especialmente pescado crudo! Whether you’re a true lover of ceviche, or an intrepid cook who loves to try out new técnicas and ingredients, read on to discover how to make ceviche even a true Peruvian would be proud of.
Primero, lo básico
Ceviche is a seafood dish that’s popular throughout Latin America, but most-associated with Perú. It’s a cold dish that’s usually served as an appetizer. Ceviche can be an intimidating dish to make for home cooks because the cooking process consists of curing raw fish with lemon or lime juice.
Tip #1 – Use the right fish
Fish is fish, right? Wrong! White fish, like sea bass (lubina), grouper (mero), flounder (platija), croaker (corvina), or sole (lenguado) work best for this dish. Shrimp and scallops also work well if you’re going for a ceviche mixto.
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Tip #2 – Make sure your ingredients are fresh
No one wants to eat a smelly old fish. Freshly-caught fish will taste mucho mejor, and is a safer bet when it comes to food preparation. Yes, yes, we know, you can’t exactly go fishing and bring home the goods yourself. Go to your local fishmonger and choose the freshest fish you can. ¡No te arrepentirás!
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Tip #3- Chop it right!
Uniform chopping leads to even marinating. Since this is essentially how you are cooking the dish, you want things to marinate todo parejo. Let your OCD run wild and whip out the ruler if you have to. Okay, okay, that might be taking things too far, but you get the idea.
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Tip #4- Marinate appropriately
If you skimp on marinating time, ¡el ceviche te quedará crudo! No one wants to eat that. If you over-marinate, ¡El ceviche se te deshace! No one likes mushy fish. Make sure your fish is in the marinade 15 – 20 minutes. No more, no less!
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Tip #5- Enjoy the right away!
Whether you like it or not, ceviche is a time-sensitive dish. It has a super short shelf life if you want to enjoy it at its prime. Save yourself a lot of grief y cómete el ceviche enseguida que esté listo! While you’re at it, make sure you prepare your ceviche the same day you bring your fish and seafood home from the market. It’s all a matter of time, people!
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