Recipe for Ceviche or is it a Seafood Salad? That's What Peruvians Want to Know

In the last 5 years or so, Ceviche has continued to rise on the Gourmet LA Food Scene. Is it really so different from Sashimi? Sure. The seasoning is different.

My friend Enrique is a purist. He's also Peruvian. He doesn't want a lot of stuff chopped up with his ceviche. He's also a snob. He basically wants sashimi with Latin flavors. Simple, pure, delicious, a tad spicy. He wants to taste the fish.

I'm a salad girl! The more chopped up cilantro, celery, onion, carrot, scallion something has, the happier I personally am!

Here is the recipe for what I now have to call a Seafood Salad aka Ceviche.

1/2 lb. of fresh halibut cut into 1 inch flat slices (very thin)
1/2 a green apple cut into small cubes/chunks
2 handfuls of cilantro chopped
2 scallions (white and light green part chopped) *
*I think it needed more and would add one or two scallions more
1 Jalapeno chopped (very fine - wash everything after, don't touch your face, privates etc.)
1/2 a firm avocado chopped (mine was a little too soft and I used too much at 3/4 an avocado)
Juice of 2 limes (use a good tool for getting all the juice out)
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbl of good olive oil
pinch of cayenne pepper
pinch of black pepper

Marinate the fish in the lime juice for 30 min. Toss every 10 minutes to make sure the lime gets all over the fish. Add a pinch of salt and maybe a teaspoon of chopped cilantro at this phase. You know it's ready when lime juice has become milky and the fish turns white.

Drain the fish after 30 min. Add to a bowl with other chopped ingredients. Toss with 2 tbl. of olive oil and 1/2 tsp sea salt and any other listed ingredients. Toss and serve with chips or small tostadas made for ceviche.

Serve with Chalupa or any other bottled hot sauce. You may further salt and pepper to taste.

*** I think a pinch of celery would have been nice here too. Traditional Mexican ceviche has tomato and sometimes cucumber. The picture below is the Campechana from Mariscos Jalisco which also has shrimp and octopus. A lot of times people add other cooked items to the fish ceviche rather than cooking the shrimp and octopus from a raw state with lime.

Find great Peruvian Ceviche HERE ::