Hello friends of the Hive realm.
We have finally received some on going good sunny weather. However if working, the treadmill at the restaurant doesn't stop.
Now that I have a day off I would like to share my plant based version of what is to me a nostalgic dish.
This mushroom ceviche is one that is inspired by the only type that I have had a few times. It was a mixed seafood ceviche, introduced to me by some friends in Acapulco Mexico. This was almost 30 years ago, and I loved it.
I may be telling you about something quite familiar, as many of you come from places that would have your own version of it, but here goes.
Ceviche is basically seafood that has been cooked in lime juice or citrus. This is supposed to be originated from Peru. It is consumed throughout many Latin American countries, and other places, changing the recipe from region to region and household to household.
When I was first in Acapulco, our friend's mother would make this, outdoors. Sometimes on the side of the building where the friend's shop was, and sometimes on the beach in a parked rowboat. Yes in a rowboat. That was a fun time. This goes back more the twenty five years ago.
For this plant based version I am substituting seafood for mushrooms. In the ceviche that I have had in the past, there were a few different items. There was a white fish, scallops, shrimp and squid, from what I recall.
King oyster, pearl oyster, portobello, and large white buttons.
The fresh items include a lot of lime. The seafood in the dish that I had in Mexico, was not cooked with heat. The lime would cook it, in a way. The Acapulco ceviche also had orange juice or orange soda. I added juice.
Mushroom ceviche
300g button mushrooms
200g portobello
170g king oyster
200g pearl oyster
1 1/2 c lime juice or to your liking
1 1/2 c orange juice
100g onion
50g jalapeno pepper
100g tomatoes
2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
1 cup cilantro
I know ketchup in this recipe may be questionable. Some recipes will use tomato paste and sweetener. I chose ketchup, because my friend's mother used ketchup. It's nostalgic. I can see her now squeezing ketchup from little packages into the big bowl. Why not a bottle I wonder.
Some recipes call for Worcestershire sauce. I don't think that the mother used it. I whipped up a vegan version and added it anyway. Sometimes less is more, but in this case, more is more.
The original Worcestershire sauce has anchovies in it.
Vegan Worcestershire sauce
60ml apple cider vinegar
30ml water
1 tablespoon cane sugar
1 tablespoon molasses
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoons tamarind paste
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon pepper
I chopped the button and portobellos with a knife keeping in mind that they would shrink.
For the two oyster mushrooms I shredded by hand to get a variety of shapes.
The texture of the different mushroom mimic the different textures of the seafood.
I wasn't sure if the citrus would react to the mushrooms in the way that it does with the raw seafood .
To be sure, I blanched the mushrooms one type at a time, for around a minute or so, depending on the type. I didn't want them overcooked in case the lime would actually do the job like with the seafood.
After blanching all the mushrooms, they were strained in a colander and cooled a bit.
While the mushrooms were being strained, I started to juice the citrus. The amount I chose was not planned.
Some limes have more juice then others. It was six limes that were needed to do the job.
I would guess that the majority of ceviche made in the world, would not contain orange juice or soda, I'm guessing.
I think the orange is one of the things that makes this style unique, but what do I know.
All of the ingredients were mixed together and had an adjustment with salt and pepper.
This smelled so good. It reminded me of a warm breeze on the Acapulco bay, while observing one of the most magical sunsets.
Acapulco has unfortunately, recently, been devastated by a deadly hurricane.
Although I wanted to dig into this right away, I did the right thing and let it marinate for several hours.
I used to work in a restaurant that had shrimp cocktail served in martini glasses with lettuce on the bottom so that's how I served the mushroom ceviche. I don't drink martinis I just have the glasses.
One thing about the Acapulco ceviche, that oddly fills me with cheer, was that it was accompanied with salty crackers, instead of tortillas. At least that's what Mexican mom always did. The crackers were in little plastic packages of two or three, I don't remember. It was such a treat for me. I'd never had anything like this before.
I managed to find similar crackers that had the word vegan on the box. That was a nice surprise.
Although the Mexican mother never garnished with olives or avocados, I chose to do it. It was already altered to be plant based, so why not.
When I chose to make a plant based version of this using mushrooms, I was uncertain if it would work.
In the end I realized that mushrooms are such a good replacement for seafood in this dish, that it would please most seafood lovers.
I know a few people with seafood allergies that could enjoy this plant based version, unless they were one of those classic mushroom haters. You know them right?
Thanks for dropping by and have a nice day
design by: @KidSistersPhotos taken with a Nikon D7500