Add that wow factor to dinner parties by plating up this simple, restaurant-style Kingfish Ceviche in just 20 minutes! Incredibly easy to make with sashimi-grade Kingfish and a delightfully creamy coconut, chilli and lime Thai Nahm Jim dressing. A definite crowd-pleaser!
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🐟 What is Ceviche?
Ceviche is a cold starter dish of raw fish or shellfish marinated and "cooked" in a citrus dressing. The acid from the citrus gently cooks the raw fish to a velvety, creamy consistency in minutes.
Ceviche, also known as cebiche, cerbiche, seviche, or sebiche is traditionally known to have originated in Peru (the world-famous Peruvian Ceviche!) but is also popular in many South American countries like Mexico, Columbia, Chile, Ecuador, Guatemala and Costa Rica.
Sashimi-grade boneless fish is cut into thin slices or diced into cubes and macerated in a dressing made of lime or lemon juice, chilli and garlic. It is tossed with salad veggies like onion, tomato and avocado and lots of fresh coriander (cilantro). Traditional ceviche was "cooked" in the citrus dressing for at least three hours. Modern versions use thinner cuts of sashimi-grade fish which is safe to eat raw and therefore the marinating time is very short - just a few minutes or as long as it takes to mix the dressing.
⏱️ Why make my Kingfish Ceviche?
- No cooking required! Just slice fish, mix dressing and drizzle.
- Packed with incredible flavours.
- High in protein.
- Elegant and easy entertaining dish. Perfect make-ahead appetizer.
- Looks gorgeous plated up.
📝 Ingredients & Substitutions
Here are some ingredients you will need to make Kingfish Ceviche,
- Kingfish - Make sure your fish is sashimi-grade which is safe to eat even raw. The marinating time of this recipe is very short and using sashimi-grade fish ensures that it is not only delicious to eat but also very safe. Kingfish can be substituted with other white fish like Cod, Trevally or Snapper. Make sure they are sashimi-grade, ask your fishmonger, and they will guide you.
- Chilli - Red cayenne chilli (long red chilli) is a great medium-strength chilli with a lovely gentle heat. If you can handle a lot more heat, Thai bird's eye chilli is a great substitute but be warmed, these can be really spicy.
- Garlic - Use fresh garlic cloves for this recipe.
- Coriander - You will need the root of the coriander for the dressing. There is no appropriate substitute for this ingredient.
- Makrut lime leaves - Also known via their more controversial name of Kaffir Lime, these are the leaves of the Makrut lime tree and are used widely in Thai cooking. They have a beautiful lime aroma. If you can't find them, substitute with lime zest.
- Lime Juice - Can be substituted with lemon juice.
- Fish Sauce - If you can't find or use fish sauce which is predominantly used for that umami salty and sour flavour, substitute with a tablespoon of lime juice and a teaspoon of soy sauce.
- Coconut Sugar - You can substitute with grated palm sugar. It has to be dark/brown sugar to achieve that caramel sweetness in this Kingfish Ceviche recipe.
- Coconut milk - Use full-fat coconut milk for that delightfully creamy dressing.
🔪 How to make Kingfish Ceviche?
- Start by preparing the Nahm Jim dressing. Add red chilli, garlic and coriander root to a mortar.
- Pound with a pestle until the aromatics become a coarse paste.
3. Add coconut sugar, lime juice and fish sauce. Gently mix with the pestle pressing down on the coconut sugar until dissolved.
4. Prep Makrut lime leaves by removing the centre stem and slicing the leaves very thinly.
5. Add Makrut lime leaves to the Nahm Jim dressing and mix well.
6. Slice the Sashimi-grade Kingfish fillet thinly.
7. Arrange kingfish slices on a rimmed serving plate. Drizzle coconut milk over the slices.
8. Drop spoonfuls of the Nahm Jim dressing over the slices.
Garnish Kingfish Ceviche with extra red chilli slices, Makrut lime leaf strips, micro herbs and lime wedges. Serve immediately.
🍽️ Serving Suggestions
This beautiful Kingfish Ceviche is a fresh, cold starter that goes well with a glass of chilled Reisling or a delicious Avocado Margarita.
Serve these complimenting Thai dishes to complete your feast.
Oven Baked Thai Green Chicken Curry
👩🏻🍳 Recipe FAQs
Sashimi-grade Kingfish is the best choice for this Ceviche recipe inspired by Thai flavours. The clean, slightly sweet flesh of Kingfish goes well with the sweet, sour, spicy and salty flavours of the dressing.
Other good fish varieties for this recipe are sashimi-grade white fish like Cod, Trevally and Snapper.
Chilling the sashimi-grade boneless fish fillet in the freezer for just 20 minutes before prep is a great way to ensure neat and thin slices that are easy to cut with a sharp knife. It also chills the fish, further elevating the taste and texture of the ceviche on presentation.
❤️ More Cold Seafood Starter Recipes
Recipe
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Ingredients
For the Nahm Jim dressing
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon coriander root, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon red cayenne chilli, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
For the Ceviche
- 200 g kingfish fillet, sashimi-grade, boneless and skinless
- ¼ cup coconut milk, full-fat and lump-free
- 2 Makrut lime leaves, destemmed and finely chopped
- ½ red cayenne chilli, thinly sliced
- Micro herbs, to serve
Instructions
- To prepare the Nahm Jim dressing, place garlic, coriander roots and chilli in a mortar and crush with a pestle to a coarse paste consistency. Add fish sauce, lime juice and coconut sugar. Mix well and set aside.
- Place kingfish fillet in the freezer for 20 minutes to firm up. Remove and slice into ½ cm thick slices.
- Drizzle coconut milk onto a rimmed serving plate. Arrange the Kingfish sashimi on top.
- Add Makrut lime leaves and chilli slices. Drizzle evenly with the Nahm Jim dressing.
- Garnish with micro herbs and serve immediately.
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