Ceviche

The first time I ever had ceviche was at my friend Kristina's house in high school

 That day the clouds parted, the sun came out, and my life was changed forever.  f you think this sounds dramatic....it's not.  It's just really that good...promise

It's so refreshing and addictive....and the bonus of it all is that it's actually really healthy . It's just shrimp and veggies.....whose gonna complain about that? 

It's a perfect summer time dish because like I said, it's super refreshing and requires no heat....so you get a meal without heating up your house.  A bonus for me because living here in AZ I avoid turning on the oven and stove at all costs about 4 months out of the year

Here's the delicious ingredients you'll need

Fresh shrimp, cilantro, red onion, orange and yellow bell peppers, cucumbers, and lemons

Start by fine dicing your red onion

And your cilantro

Then start to finely chop your shrimp.  When you think you've chopped it fine enough...you haven't.  Keep choppin!   I usually buy the larger tail on shrimps and it takes me longer to take the tails off and chop, but this time I paid a little more and got the smaller tail off ones to make it go a littler faster

 In a non reactive pan (I suggest glass) mix together the minced onion, cilantro, shrimp, and the juice of your lemons.  I usually used about 10 or so.   You want to put it in a pan with alot of surface area (I use a 9x13 baking dish) so everything can lay out in an even layer to allow the lemon juice to cook the shrimp evenly

Correction....it's not exactly "cooking"  Let me drop a little knowledge here.......

Technically, to cook something you have to apply heat.  The shrimps reaction to the lemon juice is actually just a denaturing of the protein.  The same denaturing process happens in cooking....but with the use of heat.  In this process the denaturing is being done by acid.   Make sense?

I paid thousands upon thousands, upon thousands of dollars to learn that.  Wanna thank me for this tidbit of information?  Feel free to send a check on my behalf directly to Sallie Mae....please and thank you

I kid, I kid

Unless of course you REALLY want to....I won't fight it 

Here's how it will look right after you mix it all together

Put it in the fridge and let it "denature" ;)  Stir it occasionally to make sure it is all getting coated in the lemon juice

I let these ingredients sit on their own for about 2 - 2 1/2 hours

In the mean time, finely dice your bell peppers and cucumber

I've seen some ceviches where they leave the shrimp whole and everything is really chunky, but I prefer everything chopped small so that you get a little bit of everything in every bite

After about 2 1/2 hours you'll see a difference in the shrimp.  It will be firmer and orangeish in color compared to the translucent blue look from earlier.  This means your shrimp is now "cooked"

Now mix in your bell peppers, cucumber, and diced avocado.  Add salt to taste

Your ceviche is ready!

Eat it on a tostada or with tortilla chips

I warned ya.....this stuff is CRAAAAZY addictive.  I crave it so bad I sometimes have to make stops at the ranch markets for theirs to tide me over.....but it's nothing compared to this

I also made some Posole today in honor of Cinco De Mayo

Go Here for the recipe 

*Low Carb Note*  This could easily be adapted to low carb by eating it with pork rinds, lettuce leaves, zucchini chips, or simply with a fork

Ceviche

2lb. Shrimp, finely chopped (white fish can be substituted)

2 sweet bell peppers, finely diced

1 red onion, minced

2 cucumbers (seeded), finely diced 

1 bunch of cilantro, finely chopped

5-7 avocados depending on size

10 lemons (roughly)

Salt

Mix together the red onion, cilantro, shrimp, and lemon juice and let sit in a glass pan with alot of surface area (such as a 9x13 baking dish) for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

After the shrimp looks "cooked" stir in the bell peppers, cucumber, avocado, and salt to taste and let that sit and marinate together for another hour or so before serving