Ceviche

About the dish

Ceviche is raw fish marinated in citrus juice, eaten along the Pacific coast of Latin America and most closely tied to Peru. A Peruvian ceviche uses firm white fish cut into bite-size pieces, fresh lime juice, salt, thinly sliced red onion, ají chilies and cilantro.

The acid changes the fish’s proteins much as heat does, so the flesh turns opaque and firm on the outside. It is not the same as cooking, though: citrus does not reliably kill bacteria or parasites, so the fish must be very fresh and handled with care, and many cooks use fish that has been frozen first. Modern Peruvian cooks marinate it for only a few minutes, so the center stays tender; older styles left it for hours.

The flavor is led by sour and heat, with salt sharpening both. The milky marinade left in the bowl, called leche de tigre, is often served on its own. Ceviche usually comes with soft boiled sweet potato and large-kernel corn, whose sweetness and starch balance the acid.

Written from general cooking knowledge, as background on a dish from the game’s recipe book. It is not a tested recipe.

The flavors it leans on

• Sour
• Heat
• Salt