Ceviche, pronounced suh-VEE-chay, is seafood "cooked" by the acid of citrus, in this case lemon and lime juice. It is a dish of South American origin, but in this ceviche recipe I use flavors commonly seen in Thai cooking. I'm using California halibut here, but this dish would also work well with snapper, rockfish, lingcod, flounder or fluke, tuna or yellowtail.
Prep Time: 3 hours, 15 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours, 15 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 lb halibut
- 1 cup lemon juice
- 2 T. Asian fish sauce
- Juice of 2 limes
- 3 finely chopped garlic cloves
- 1-2 hot green chiles, such as cayenne or thai
- 3 finely chopped green onions
- 2 T. chopped mint
- 1 T. chopped cilantro
- 1 finely chopped lemongrass stalk (white part only)
- 1 T. sesame oil
Preparation:
Slice the halibut into small cubes. How small depends on your time constraints: The smaller they are the faster they will "cook" in the citrus marinade. I like larger pieces, so I cut mine into cube of about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch.
In a plastic or glass container, pour in the cup of lemon juice and toss in the halibut chunks. Mix well to coat the fish, and leave in the fridge for at least 2 hours. You can leave them in for up to 8 hours.
After the fish has marinated for several hours, pour out the lemon juice and add all the other ingredients. Mix well and return it to the fridge for another 1-2 hours.
Serve over thinly sliced limes or in a cup made from lettuce or Napa cabbage. This is a fine appetizer for four, or a main course for two.
