My buddy, Ed, of Puerto Rican descent, spent his time in the Air Force in Central and South America. Ed's favorite dish: ceviche! He tells endless tales of trying ceviche, which is seafoods 'cooked' in nothing but citrus juice. Ed always said that the ceviche he would eat by the gallon, if he could get it, was that he had in Costa Rica.
Virtually every country with a seacoast has it's own version of ceviche (say-VEE-chay). The citrus acid literally cold cooks the seafoods used, and when paired with various vegetables and certain flavorful elements, becomes an elegant appetizer, a beautiful and healthy snack, or, in Eddie's case, an excuse for overindulgence, especially when paired with a cold beer...
Just be sure the seafoods are very fresh. And, since you are chopping the seafoods up, you need not buy the biggest and most expensive. Let the flavors make the impression - not the size.
You can make a ceviche with almost any seafood - clams, shrimp, any firm-fleshed fish, octopus...
This is a simple, clean, and astoundingly flavorful treat - whether you hog it all to yourself - LIKE SOME PEOPLE I KNOW - or serve it well-chilled and elegantly to guests before they dine.
So here's what you do with that pound of seafood you just brought home from the fishmonger.
CEVICHE! ~ Costa Rican Style Recipe
