Spicy Halibut Ceviche with Casera Style Tortilla Chips

This Spicy Halibut Ceviche is so refreshing and bold. It is an amazing appetizer and is representative of seaside Mexican street food. I'm so glad I finally tried making it!

I'm in this little group of Fish Friday food blogger pals who post fish dishes on the third Friday of every month. We were pulled together by my friend Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. The theme of this month's Fish Friday is "spicy," chosen by Caroline of Caroline's Cooking.

While my first thoughts were tacos or enchiladas, I decided to get adventurous and try making a spicy ceviche.

Ceviches are traditionally made with a meaty salt water fish such as halibut, snapper, or bass. The fish is "cooked" in lime juice, and then flavored with various ingredients, such as onion, minced green olives, cilantro, and chiles.

Ceviche made with raw fish should be made with a sashimi grade fish, and it should have no odor at all. If your fish smells the least bit "fishy," don't use it for ceviche. Get the fish from the most reliable fish purveyor you can find. Note: fish that has been blast frozen on the docks right after it has been caught and then shipped to your fishmonger is as good if not better than fresh fish that has never been frozen.

If you are still squeamish about using raw fish, you can also make this ceviche with small cooked shrimp or cooked bay scallops. Just marinate the fish for about 20 minutes in about half the amount of lime juice.

I decide to go all in and use wild Alaskan halibut for this ceviche. I bought it at this little fish market that recently opened up nearby. It's not inexpensive, but it's totally worth it.

Okay, I'll admit it... between the fish and the limes, this is probably the most expensive recipe on this blog, except for possibly this beef bourguignon (depending upon the price of the entire bottle of wine added to the dish). What can I say? I love flexing new culinary muscles and making food I've never tried before. This dish was worth every penny. I had it for lunch, dinner, and breakfast the next day. Mr. Kitchen, who won't even try sushi, loved it too.

This recipe is perfect for a party appetizer with homemade "casera style" tortilla chips.  We enjoyed it with mango and chili margaritas.

Spicy Halibut Ceviche with Casera Style Tortilla Chips

Ingredients

For the ceviche

1 pound sashimi quality wild Alaskan halibut, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 1/2 cups fresh lime juice (about 18 limes)

1 small white onion, finely chopped

2 large jalapeños, stems removed, and roughly sliced

1/4 cup pitted green olives

3 ripe Roma tomatoes, cored, and chopped into 3/8 inch pieces 

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

For the tortilla chips

10 to 15 corn tortillas

1 to 2 cups of vegetable oil
Sea salt

Instructions

To make the ceviche

1. Place the fish in a medium glass bowl, and add the lime juice. Stir in the onion and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours. 
2. Drain the fish and onion mixture, reserving about 1/3 of the liquid in the refrigerator.
3. In a mini food processor, pulse together the jalapeños and green olives. Add the mixture to the fish and onions.  
4. Add the tomatoes, cilantro, olive oil, salt, and sugar. Refrigerate prior to serving, no more than an hour or so. 
5. Serve with fresh tortilla chips, with or without adding back some of the lime juice liquid, depending on your taste. 

To make the tortilla chips

1. Cut the corn tortillas into triangles. 
2. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven to 350 degrees F.
3. Cook the chips, in batches, until lightly browned. Drain on paper towels. 
4. Sprinkle with sea salt. 

Ceviche recipe adapted from Fiesta at Rick's by Rick Bayless. There are several amazing ceviche recipes in this book. 

Would you like to join Fish Friday Foodies? We post and share new seafood/fish recipes on the third Friday of the month. To join our group please email Wendy at wendyklik1517@gmail.com.Visit our Facebook page and Pinterest page for more wonderful fish and seafood recipe ideas.

An InLinkz Link-up