Summer is only a few days away, but here in Florida it has practically arrived: humidity, rain, storms, and heat. This is the weather that sends me looking for something cool and bright instead of another steaming plate. So I am returning to the summer food series with ceviche, a dish that knows a thing or two about refreshing the senses.
Ceviche appears in many forms across Latin America, from Peru to Mexico and beyond. Its history and even its name have several proposed explanations: the Quechua word siwichi, a connection to Spanish escabeche and Arabic sikbaj, or the fish itself. The stories differ, and so do the recipes. That variety is part of the appeal.
The common thread is citrus. Lime, lemon, or another citrus juice adds brightness and changes the fish’s texture by denaturing its proteins. The flesh becomes firmer and more opaque, which is why people say the juice ‘cooks’ it. But this is not the same as cooking with heat: citrus does not reliably eliminate harmful bacteria or parasites. Use fish specifically sourced and handled for raw consumption, keep everything refrigerated, and do not treat freshness or the lime juice as a safety guarantee. For a fully cooked version, start with cooked seafood. The FDA’s seafood guidance explains the difference.
I build ceviche much like salsa: a base, a few supporting ingredients, and an accent to tie everything together. Fish or shellfish supplies the base. I like the texture of shellfish and the richness of salmon, even though salmon is not the most traditional choice. Its fattiness works especially well with avocado and onion. Vegetables or fruit can provide the supporting flavors, but I follow two rules:
- Keep it simple: three or four supporting ingredients are plenty.
- Keep the flavors in a coherent direction, whether Mexican-inspired, Japanese-inspired, or your own combination.
Finally, choose an herb or spice as the accent. A little goes a long way when the rest of the ingredients are fresh and bright.
For this version I chose a Mexican-inspired combination. By all means, use the flavors you enjoy most.
Base:
- 1 lb salmon, sourced and handled for raw consumption
- 5–8 limes
Filler:
- 3 medium tomatoes
- 1 red onion
- 2 firm, just-ripe avocados
- 2 jalapeños
Accent:
- Dill, to taste
- Sea salt
Sea salt is a nice finishing touch. For the avocados, choose fruit that is just ripe but still firm enough to dice; very soft avocado will fall apart when you mix it.
If the salmon still has its skin, loosen one corner with a narrow-bladed knife.
Hold that corner and work the blade along the skin, keeping the fish on the cutting board. Ideally it will come away in one piece.
Cut the skinned salmon into strips.
Cut those into narrower strips, about ¼ inch thick.
Cut across them to make roughly ¼-inch cubes. Small pieces firm up more quickly in the citrus; larger pieces keep a softer center. Neither texture tells you whether raw fish is safe to eat.
Here is the salmon, diced. I usually trim away the darker flesh near the center because its flavor is stronger, but that is a matter of taste.
Cut the limes. I used five here. Lemon works too, but I particularly like the way lime cuts through the richness of the salmon.
Squeeze enough juice over the fish to cover it.
Add 1 teaspoon of sea salt, cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
The flesh will soon turn more opaque as its proteins denature. More time changes the texture further, but an opaque surface is not evidence that the fish has been cooked or made safe.
Dice the onion. We have covered this in earlier posts, and I am beginning to think I have photographed enough onions for a lifetime.
Set the avocado on a cutting board and cut around it lengthwise, guiding the knife around the pit.
Twist the halves apart.
Remove the pit carefully with a spoon.
Scoop the flesh from the skin with a spoon. Save the empty skins if you would like to use them as serving bowls.
Place each avocado half cut-side down and make lengthwise slices.
Cut across those slices to dice the avocado.
Squeeze a little more lime over it to slow browning.
You should have about 2–3 cups of diced avocado.
Cut the tomatoes in half.
Use a paring knife to remove the watery seed sections.
Save them for another use, or discard them.
Then dice the tomatoes.
Now we have our salmon, onion, tomato, and avocado ready to go.
Lift the salmon from its curing liquid with a slotted spoon and combine it with the vegetables. Discard the used juice; we do not need that strongly fishy liquid in the finished dish.
Fold everything together gently. Adjust the balance as you go. I held back a little onion rather than letting it take over.
Now for the heat. Remove the seeds from the jalapeños and dice the peppers finely.
Add them to the mixture.
Chop the dill and add it to taste. Cover and refrigerate for another 2–3 hours, then serve chilled.
Serve it on a plate, in the avocado skins, or in a bowl. My favorite is a martini glass. Yes, after all my complaining about oversized martini glasses, I have finally found an excellent use for them. Chill a 12-ounce glass in the freezer first.
I put a little watercress dressed with sesame-ginger dressing in the bottom. You can skip that if you prefer.
Spoon the ceviche on top.
Cut a thin slice of lime and make a small slit in one side.
Garnish the glass, find somewhere cool to sit, and enjoy. Yumm!