Easy Ceviche
2
Published Jul 05, 2024
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This fish ceviche recipe is super easy to make with simple ingredients. It’s refreshing, packed with flavor and can be served as an appetizer with chips or as a main dish.
Isaac and I LOVE ceviche! If we’re out for dinner and there’s ceviche on the menu we’re definitely ordering it. For awhile we’ve talked about wanting to make ceviche at home, but never got around to making it, that is until now!
This ceviche recipe is the ultimate summer dish, perfect for hot days when you want something light and refreshing that’s easy to make and satisfying. I could easily eat this entire dish by myself (it’s SO good!), but I love serving it as an appetizer with tortilla chips, similar to how you would serve guacamole or this cowboy caviar.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Fresh and Flavorful – The combination of fresh fish, lime and lemon juice with crunchy vegetables creates a refreshing dish that’s jam-packed with flavor and perfect for summer!
- Healthy – This recipe is low-calorie and packed with lean protein, healthy fats and plenty of veggies, so it’s an awesome appetizer or light lunch option.
- Quick and Easy – With minimal prep and no cooking required, this dish comes together in no time.
Ingredients Needed
- white fish – I used fresh halibut, but you can reference the section below for some other seafood options. Just make sure you’re using fresh and high quality fish!
- lime juice and lemon juice – provides the essential acidity to “cook” and tenderize the fish.
- vegetables – you’ll need jalapeño, cherry tomatoes, cucumber and red onion for this recipe. Feel free to use different tomatoes or swap the jalapeño with a bell pepper if you don’t like spice. For more spice, you can use a serrano pepper or habanero pepper.
- cilantro – I love adding fresh herbs to my recipes and cilantro pairs perfectly with ceviche.
- avocado – this adds creaminess and healthy fats and pairs nicely with the fish and veggies.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below.
The Best Fish to Use for Ceviche
I love halibut, but the options are endless when it comes to the type of seafood you can use in ceviche. Some other options are snapper, mahi mahi, scallops and sea bass. You can also use shellfish like shrimp or crab for a different texture and flavor.
Whatever fish you do use be sure it’s fresh and high quality. The quality of the fish matters when it comes to this recipe! I recommend grabbing wild-caught seafood if possible. If you have access to a local fish market with freshly caught fish, I would recommend you start there. If not, just look for sushi-grade or let the fishmonger at your grocery store know you’re using raw fish for ceviche so they can better assist you in picking out the best variety of fish to use.
How to Make Ceviche
Step 1: Add fish, lime juice, lemon juice, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, jalapeño, salt and pepper into a bowl.
Step 2: Toss well and cover. Place in the fridge to marinate for 20-30 minutes or up to 4 hours. Gently stir in diced avocado. Taste and add additional salt if needed.
Brittany’s Tips!
- Don’t skimp when it comes to the quality of your fish for this recipe! Make sure you grab sushi-grade or a high quality fish option.
- Allow the fish to marinate in the citrus juices for at least 20-30 minutes to “cook” it properly. You can marinate it for up to 4 hours for more “well-done” fish, but don’t let it sit for longer than 4 hours otherwise the fish could become tough and less tasty.
How to Serve Ceviche
I could totally eat this entire dish myself for lunch or dinner, but I love serving ceviche as an appetizer with tortilla chips. My two favorite tortilla chip brands are Late July (I like their organic chia & quinoa chips) and Zack’s Mighty, which are organic.
It’s the perfect summer appetizer or side dish for a cookout with friends! If you’re looking for some good cookout recipes try my turkey burgers or cilantro lime chicken burgers for a main dish and for some sides this classic broccoli salad, watermelon salad and grilled sweet potatoes are great options.
Storing Leftovers
Fresh ceviche is best eaten right away, but you can store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 24-48 hours.
Just a note, that the fish will continue to “cook” in the juices as it sits so the fish will become tougher, but I’ve still enjoyed the leftovers!
Frequently Asked Questions
Ceviche is a popular seafood dish that is thought to have originated in Peru, but there are many different variations, spellings and pronunciations of this dish depending on what country you’re in. Ceviche is made by marinating chunks of fish or shellfish in an acidic marinade, typically consisting of lemon and lime juice. Orange juice and other citrus fruits can also be used depending on the region. It also usually includes fresh chopped vegetables, avocado and herbs.
I prefer fresh fish, but if you don’t have access to high quality fresh fish, frozen is a great option. Just look for a wild caught and flash frozen seafood option and make sure it’s thoroughly thawed before using.
This depends on how tender you want your fish. The general rule is to marinate the fish for at least 20-30 minutes to properly “cook” it, but no more than 4 hours. I’ve found that 30 minutes is perfect for our preference. The fish is mostly opaque, yet still tender. If you marinate it for 2-4 hours the fish will be more “well-done”. After 4 hours the fish will be tougher and won’t be as delicious.
If you’re new to ceviche you may be wondering if it’s safe to eat and the answer is yes! The citrus marinade basically “cooks” the fish, breaking down its proteins and tenderizing it due to the high acidity content.
That said, the USDA recommends avoiding raw or undercooked seafood to minimize the risk of food born illness, especially for at-risk groups including pregnant women, children, older adults and those with weakened immune systems.
More Appetizers to Try
- Smoked Salmon Dip
- Easy Pineapple Salsa
- Easy Shrimp Cocktail
- Easy Corn Salsa (Chipotle Copycat)
- Mexican Shrimp Cocktail
- Whipped Feta Dip
Be sure to check out the full collection of appetizers on EBF!
If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below.
Ceviche
Ingredients
- 1 lb fresh white fish, chopped into bite-size pieces, I used halibut.
- ⅓ cup lime juice
- ⅓ cup lemon juice
- 1 jalapeno, seeded, diced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, diced
- 1 cup cucumber, diced
- ½ cup red onion, diced
- ¼ cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 avocado, diced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Cracked black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Add fish, lime juice, lemon juice, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, jalapeno, salt and pepper into a bowl.
- Toss well and cover. Place in the fridge to marinate for 20-30 minutes or up to 4 hours. Gently stir in diced avocado. Taste and add additional salt if needed. If you feel like there is too much liquid, you can drain some off.
- Serve with tortilla chips and enjoy!
Notes
- Fish: I love halibut, but the options are endless when it comes to the type of seafood you can use in ceviche. Some other options are snapper, mahi mahi, scallops and sea bass. You can also use shellfish like shrimp or crab for a different texture and flavor.
- Jalapeno: Use a serrano peppers or habanero for more heat, or bell peppers for a milder option.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
wait – I love cerveche but you lost me a sushi grade Tilapia? is that really even a thing? Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against eating Tilapia (I do so regularly) but I always buy it frozen and while I know it is sold fresh, I have never seen it advertised as “sushi grade”. and I have never been to a sushi restaurant and seen Tilapia on the menu! I love your recipes so not trying to be a hater, but eating raw or even nearly raw fish or any meat needs to be treated with an abundance of caution!
Hi Molly! The recipe actually calls for sushi-grade white fish, I used & recommend halibut. I did list tilapia as an option along with a few others, but I would recommend sticking to halibut for this recipe. Let me know if you give it a try!