Ceviche a perfect end-of-summer dish

If you're searching for something to refresh your palate from the remnants of smoky barbecue and grilled hot dogs of backyard cookouts, look no further than ceviche - a cool, farewell kiss to the last days of summer as the blistering days fizzle into autumn.

As summer's traditional last weekend approaches, no one wants to spend more time in a hot kitchen than necessary. Ceviche, with its chilled spoonfuls of lush, seasonal flavors, offers a respite from the heat of the kitchen. It occupies a unique culinary niche; one of a few dishes that require little to no sweat and tears in the kitchen and absolutely no heat involved. No burners to turn on, no grill to start. Just toss diced fish with citrus juice in a bowl and let the penetrating powers of acid work their magic.

Now that's not to say there won't be a knife and cutting board involved - even-sized pieces ensure even "cooking," but at least you won't be standing over a barbecue pit waiting for your meat to brown while getting bathed in clouds of smoke. The only thing heating up in your kitchen will be South American spices and marinades.

Ceviche (also seviche or cebiche), is a Latin American, raw fish appetizer that renders in citrus juice. Though to true ceviche afficionados, ceviche can be so much more.

"(Ceviche) relies primarily on the highest-quality ingredients and skillfully, precise, simple preparation," chef Douglas Rodriguez writes in his book "The Great Ceviche Book" (2003 Ten Speed Press). As the undisputed inventor of Nuevo Latin cuisine, Rodriguez, who opened De La Costa in Chicago in 2007, calls the dish "the perfect summer food.

"It is easy to prepare and a dish where the ingredients are the stars," Rodriguez says. "It's low in fat, low in carbs, high in protein and high in flavor."

The countless varieties, ingredients, colors, textures and preparations is anything but "simple" and its history is just as colorful as the vegetables and fruits that garnish it.

Ceviche's hallmark is a piquant marinade that not only flavors the protein but "cooks" it.

The "cooking" method does not require heat, but utilizes the acidic juices to denature the seafood, firming the flesh and turning it opaque. Some hard-core culinarians argue that without heat, ceviche is not "cooked" although the chemical change that occurs alters the proteins structure; not necessarily cooking with applied heat, but rearranging a few molecules and presenting you with a mouthful of tasty morsels.

While ceviche is finding new fans at restaurants around the suburbs and Chicago, its history dates back to the Incas. The ancient people seasoned their freshly caught fish with salt and chile peppers and cured it in acidic juice. Because of the abundant marine life swimming in the waters along the South American coast, Latin Americans have had centuries to perfect and develop the diverse flavors, techniques and styles using indigenous ingredients.

Traditionally ceviche combined raw fish, sour orange juice, sliced onion and minced regional chilies such as the aji limo or Andean rocoto, according to www.mundoandino.com. Culinary historians agree that neighboring countries Ecuador and Peru established ceviche early on, though the debate continues over which country actually invented and unveiled the dish to the world's platter.

Peruvian ceviche is generally very spicy, served on a lettuce leaf without the marinade, adorned with slices of cold sweet potatoes, hard-boiled egg, cheese along side corn on the cob and a crucial ingredient, the Peruvian lemon.

"In a majority of Peruvian ceviches, the raw fish is dressed at the last second with pureed aji Amarillo (yellow chile)," chef Michelle Bernstein writes in her book, "Cuisine à Latina" (2008 Houghton Mifflin Company, $30). Because of the last-second marriage of acid and fish, most of those ceviches have sashimi-like textures.

In contrast, Ecuadorean ceviche comes in a bowl accompanied by popcorn, French bread or cancaha (toasted, dried corn) soaking in a ketchup- or tomato-base with hot sauce on the side.

A common ingredient that threads all ceviches is the use of lime juice. It is widely assumed that any citrus juice will work because of common acidity levels.

"I can't pick a favorite regional ceviche. I like preparing and eating all varieties," chef Rodriguez says. "I can only recommend that you try them all."

No matter what region you try to emulate at home, don't cut corners on the seafood. Only very fresh fish should be used so don't go digging three-week old orange roughy out of the freezer and dicing it up for ceviche.

"The most important thing is finding a reputable source and buying fresh fish. I prefer fattier fish rather than lean, like salmon and hamachi, because of the texture it gives to the dish," Rodriguez says.

At the market, scope out some nice pieces that have a pleasant, ocean air aroma and are free of discoloration and wear and tear. Any variety of fish or shellfish may be used, but if you are going to make ceviche with shellfish, most recipes call for blanching (partially cooking) the fish before adding it to the marinade.

Many restaurants today serve ceviche in bowls of crushed ice or in tall martini glasses, presentations that are fun and easy to duplicate at home. So raise a glass of succulent ceviche with your friends and toast to Labor Day.

Strawberry Shrimp Ceviche

Ceviche Dressing

¼ cup chopped, stemmed strawberries

¼ cup chopped plum tomato

1 tablespoons olive oil

4 teaspoons fresh lime juice

4 teaspoons red wine vinegar

2 teaspoons chopped, seeded jalapeno

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Ceviche

¾ pound cooked, peeled shrimp

1 cups peeled, seeded and diced cucumber

¾ cup diced red onion

1 tablespoons chopped, seeded jalapeno

1 cups (about ¼ pound) quartered, stemmed strawberries

3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

For the dressing: Puree all ingredients until smooth in a blender or food processor.

For the ceviche: In a large bowl, toss shrimp, cucumber, onion and peppers with dressing.

Refrigerate, covered, at least 30 minutes but no more than 4 hours.

Just before serving, add strawberries and cilantro; mix gently but thoroughly.

Serves six.

Bay Scallop Ceviche with Mint Marinated Watermelon

1 navel orange

½ cup, plus 2 tablespoons, fresh orange juice

¼ cup fresh lime juice

½ cup diced (¼ inch), seeded watermelon

½ teaspoon finely grated, peeled, fresh ginger

1 tablespoons finely diced red onion

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

½ teaspoon salt

¼ pound bay scallops, tough side muscles removed

1 tablespoons fresh mint

4 heads Red Oak lettuce (about 1¼ pounds)

Cut and peel white pith from orange with sharp paring knife and then cut segments free from membranes. Chop enough segments to measure ¼ cup.

In a large bowl, stir together chopped orange, orange juice, lime juice, watermelon, ginger, onion, chili flakes and salt.

Bring a 1-quart saucepan, three-quarters full of salted water, to a boil and add scallops. Reduce heat to a simmer and poach scallops until just cooked through, about 1 minute. With a slotted spoon, transfer scallops to a bowl of ice and cold water to stop cooking. Drain well and pat dry.

Add scallops and mint to watermelon mixture and toss to combine, season with salt.

Chill ceviche, covered, at least 1 hour.

Right before service, trim and separate lettuce leaves. Serve ceviche with lettuce leaves on the side and use a slotted spoon to transfer ceviche to lettuce.

Serves 10.

Halibut with Lemon and Coriander Oil

1 pounds skinless halibut fillet, cut crosswise into 3 pieces

½cup freshly squeezed lime juice

1 tablespoon salt

Coriander oil

3 tablespoons coriander seeds

1 tablespoon salt

3 tablespoons virgin olive oil

Marinade

½ cup freshly squeezed lemo

½ juice

2 tablespoons finely chopped pickled jalapenos

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

½ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro

4 green onions, thinly sliced

½ red onion, thinly sliced into half-moons

Set the halibut on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and freeze for about two hours, until very firm, but not frozen solid.

Once frozen, remove the halibut from the freezer and slice it crosswise very thin. In a nonreactive bowl, combine the sliced halibut, lime juice and one tablespoon salt. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hours.

To make the coriander oil: Toast the coriander seeds in a dry saute pan over high heat until they begin to pop, about four minutes. Crush the seeds and one tablespoon salt with a mortar and pestle. In a small bowl, blend the crushed seeds with the oil and let rest at room temperature.

Before serving, gently toss the halibut and lime juice with the marinade ingredients and drizzle with the coriander oil.

Serves six.

Mahi-Mahi Ceviche with Jalapenos and Coconut

1 pound mahi-mahi fillets, cut lengthwise into ¼-inch-thick strips

1 cups fresh lime juice

1 teaspoons dried Mexican oregano

red onion, thinly sliced

4 jalapenos, seeded; 2 minced, 2 thinly sliced

¼ cup toasted, unsweetened shredded coconut

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Saltine crackers

In a large bowl, combine fish, lime juice and oregano and sprinkle with salt. Chill until fish turns opaque, stirring occasionally, about 50 minutes.

Strain almost all lime juice from fish; return to bowl. Stir in onion, minced and sliced jalapenos, coconut and cilantro. Season with salt.

Chill at least 20 minutes and up to 2 hours.

Serve in martini glasses and pass crackers separately

Serves six.

epicurious.com (Bon Appétit, May 2003)

Peruvian Mixed Seafood Ceviche

2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning

8 large shrimp (16-20 count), peeled and deveined

2 ounces cleaned baby octopus or squid

4 large sea scallops, tough side muscle removed, or 20 bay scallops

8 littleneck or Manila clams, scrubbed

8 mussels, scrubbed and debearded

4 ounces skinless, snapper fillet, cut into bite-sized pieces

¼ cup minced peeled celery

1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger

¼ teaspoon minced, seeded habanero or jalapeno chili

1 teaspoons kosher salt

½ cup fresh lime juice

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

¼ cup fresh orange juice

¼ cup very thinly sliced red onion

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Fill a medium pot about three-quarters full with water, add the Old Bay and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, fill a large bowl halfway with ice water.

Add the shrimp to the boiling water and cook just until firm and pink, about 30 seconds. Use tongs, a slotted spoon or a skimmer to transfer the shrimp to the ice water.

Add the octopus to the boiling water and cook for 45 seconds, then transfer to the ice water. Add the scallops to the boiling water and cook for 45 seconds, then transfer them to the ice water. Add the clams to the boiling water just until the shells open, about four to five minutes; as they open transfer them to a large plate or bowl. Add the mussels to the boiling water and cook just until the shells open, about 1 minutes; transfer them to the plate.

Remove seafood from ice water and drain well in a colander. Cut the shrimp and sea scallops into quarters (if using bay scallops, leave whole). Cut the octopus into bite-sized pieces.

Put all seafood and the celery, ginger, habanero and salt in a large nonmetallic bowl and stir together gently, but thoroughly. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Add the lime juice, lemon juice, orange juice, onion and cilantro to the seafood and stir gently to combine.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours, before serving.

Divide the ceviche among four bowls. If desired, garnish with corn-on-the-cob, sweet potato and/or corn nuts or popcorn.

Serves four.

"Cuisine à Latina" by Michelle Bernstein (2008 Houghton Mifflin Company, $30)