My first experience with ceviche was on Isla Mujeres in Mexico, and it was the beginning of a lasting flavour love affair!
My experience involved fresh tomato, onion, chilis, avocado, shrimp and LOTS of lime juice and tortilla chips. I still love it today…
It can also use fresh white flesh fish instead of shrimp, and one of the KEYS to ceviche is the LACK of cooking in the traditional sense…
The shrimp, fish or other seafood is normally ‘cooked’ simply by the marinating step where an acid (in this case, lime juice) does the job, and yes it does work…
In South American countries like Peru, Ecuador & Colombia ceviche is something a little different…
First off, not a lot of tomatoes are used in what I’ve seen, and many of the ‘sauces’ are a bit more complex than ‘just’ lime juice. No tortilla chips, maybe a very few plantain chips or more likely the corn nuts.
They do the marinate to cook step, BUT I have skipped that in this recipe! I used frozen, peeled, cooked Atlantic shrimp (not the tiny ‘cocktail’ size, but the next size up), thawed overnight in the fridge and then rinsed and returned the fridge to ‘drip dry’. The sauce is thickened by the olive oil & mayonnaise (I used Miracle Whip – which has a sweeter taste – your choice), the idea is to have a consistency that ‘stick’ to the ingredients, so about like a ‘cream soup-like’ consistency. The salted corn nuts are a Colombian thing (although widely available here) as well and they add that necessary crunchiness to the ceviche without overfilling you with chips!
All said…
A wonderful ‘food memory’ of a cherished trip to Colombia!
Ingredients
1 medium red onion, cut in half & thinly sliced
1 cubanelle pepper, diced (use a hotter pepper if you like the heat!)
1 lb (450 gm) small cooked peeled shrimp (refrigerated)
2 Tbsp Persian Lime Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Key LimeWhite Balsamic, divided
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
1/4 cup mayonnaise (or plain yogurt)
2 firm-ish avocado, diced
1/3 cup finely minced fresh cilantro
1/2 cup salted corn nuts
Directions
Add 1 Tbsp of the Key Lime Balsamic to the sliced red onion and diced peppers, stir together and set aside for an hour or so (mix occasionally).
In a bowl whisk together the Persian Lime Olive Oil, remaining Key Lime Balsamic, lime juice and mayonnaise (or yogurt) and whisk together, refrigerate.
Rinse pre-cooked shrimp in cold water, drain and leave in the fridge resting in a colander in a bowl for an hour to dry.
When ready to serve, combine the onion/pepper (& liquids), with the shrimp, sauce, diced avocado and minced cilantro.
Dish into individual cups or ramekins.
Top with a heaping tablespoon of corn nuts and serve cold!
