Tu Vez Latino Culinary Academy: Ceviche

Welcome to the Tu Vez Latino Culinary Academy! We are determined to teach Latino men how to feed themselves without having to go to a drive-through. Will it be an old family recipe? A delicious cocktail? A trade secret? Stay tuned to find out!

One of my favorite dishes is ceviche. For those of you unfortunate souls who’ve never had it, it’s basically a cold raw fish, lime juice, and vegetable medley. The best ceviche I ever had was on the La Isla De Alacranes (Island of Scorpions) in the middle of Lake Chapala in Mexico. It was called The Island of Scorpions because it was crawling with the deadly buggers. Anyways, some people have a knee jerk reaction to the idea of raw fish. Much like sushi, ceviche isn’t cooked in heat but it is “cooked” enzymaticlly with citrus. It is 100% safe to eat and you won’t get salmonella or anything. What you will get is a delicious refreshing dish that you can serve at your next party. It is also low-calorie, low-carb, low-fat food for those of you watching your figure.

Ceviche

5 Pounds of mahi-mahi, cod, red snapper, or peeled shrimp

2 Lemons, juiced. Juiced as in squeezed not juiced like Jose Canseco

2 Limes, also juiced

1 Red pepper, finely diced

1 Green pepper, also finally diced

1 Red onion, ditto

2 Jalapeños, seeded and diced like all the rest

1 Tomato, you know what to do

1/2 Cup of cilantro

1/2 Cup of olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

This dish is so easy to make, anyone can make it. Like, even people who are so bad at cooking they burn Froot Loops. Put the fish in a non-reactive non-metal bowl. Mix in all the citrus and olive oil in the bowl until the fish is covered. Let it marinate in the fridge for two to three hours. This is when the citrus juices “cook” the fish using chemistry and sciency stuff we don’t really understand. Look, we’re bloggers not chemists. Take the fish out and dice it into little cubes. The fish should just come apart easily. Mix in the rest of the ingredients and serve on a plate or bowl. You can eat it with tortilla chips or crackers. It’s best if it’s finished right before you eat it.