Don Ceviche by Martin Morales

In our quest for the ultimate recipes, FavorFlav went in search of the perfect ceviche. And then you inevitably end up with Martin Morales, the man who championed Peruvian cuisine in London by opening his restaurant Ceviche.

“Aqui se cocina con carino”, the restaurant’s motto literally means here we cook with loving attention. According to Morales, besides love and attention, sazón is very important: finding the perfect balance of flavors.

Method
Wash the red onion rings and soak them in ice-cold water for 5 minutes. Drain the rings well, spread them out on a piece of kitchen paper or a clean tea towel so they can lose any excess water, and refrigerate until needed. This makes the onion less sharp while keeping it crisp.

The fish

Cut the fish into even strips of approximately 3×2 cm. Place them in a large bowl, add a generous pinch of salt and carefully mix everything with a metal spoon. The salt helps open the pores of the fish. Let the fish stand for 2 minutes, pour in the tiger’s milk and carefully mix everything again with the spoon. Let the fish ‘cook’ in this marinade for 2 minutes.

Add the onion, coriander, limo pepper and potato cubes to the fish. Carefully mix everything with the spoon and taste to check whether the salty, sour and spicy flavors are balanced. Divide the ceviche among bowls and serve immediately.

Classic Amarillo tiger’s milk

Place a 5 mm piece of fresh ginger root (halved), 1 small garlic clove (halved), 4 coarsely chopped sprigs of coriander and the juice of 8 limes in a bowl. Stir and leave to infuse for 5 minutes. Pour the mixture through a sieve into another bowl. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 2 teaspoons amarillo paste and mix well. You can keep the tiger’s milk in the refrigerator for 4 hours.

Amarillo paste

Put 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pan. Heat over medium heat and add 100 grams of fresh or frozen chilies of your choice, deseeded, or 35 grams of dried chilies soaked in water and coarsely chopped, plus 1/2 finely chopped small onion. Fry everything over low heat for approximately ten minutes, stirring regularly.

Add 2 crushed garlic cloves and fry for another 5 minutes until soft, making sure it does not brown too much.

Transfer the contents of the pan to a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Store the chili paste in a sterilized jar in the refrigerator.

Ceviche the cuisine of Peru

Martin Morales
€29,95
Fontaine Uitgevers