I've tried fish ceviche from many Peruvian restaurants where I live (Houston TX), and they seem to taste about the same.
So I tried to recreate their secret recipe but there's something missing.
For the fish, I used mahi-mahi, although I think these restaurants use red snapper. The fish I used is not fresh, but "previously frozen". I suspect they don't use fresh fish, either.
For the marinade, I use key lime juice, Kosher salt, garlic and cilantro. And I let it marinate for about 30 minutes.
But the flavor turns out to be too acidic and unpleasant. I'm wondering if I need to dilute the key lime juice with water or perhaps add a bit of sugar.
What am I doing wrong? What secret ingredient am I missing?
Best Answer
What you're missing is called "leche de tigre", which is the particular marinade used for Peruvian ceviche, and has several more ingredients than the ones you've named, such as fish stock, fish puree, onions, garlic, and peppers. Here's a recipe just for the marinade, and another one with a whole ceviche preparation.
I suspect that the ceviche recipe you're following is for Mexican ceviche, which is, traditionally, very acidic.