Peru's national pride: white fish "cooked" in lime in minutes, with red onion, chili, and the leche de tigre you'll want to drink from the bowl.
500 g
🐟 White Fish ›
sushi-grade, firm — sea bass ideal, 2 cm dice
8
🍋 Lime ›
juiced (about 200 ml)
1
🧅 Red Onion ›
shaved paper-thin, rinsed
1
🍠 Sweet Potato ›
boiled, sliced — the traditional sweet anchor
Mise en place
Before you start
Prep checklist
White Fish — sushi-grade, firm — sea bass ideal, 2 cm dice
Lime — juiced (about 200 ml)
Red Onion — shaved paper-thin, rinsed
Sweet Potato — boiled, sliced — the traditional sweet anchor
Salt the fish 5 minutes (it firms and seasons), then submerge in the lime juice with half the onion and the chili.
Cure 10–15 minutes, stirring once: outside opaque, center barely translucent. Modern Lima goes shorter, not longer.
💡
Lime denatures protein like heat does — but past 20 minutes it "overcooks" to chalk. Set a timer like it's on the stove.
Fold in cilantro and the rest of the onion. Serve immediately in the juice — the leche de tigre — with sweet potato slices.
Taste before serving and adjust salt and acid — the last 30 seconds of seasoning matter more than any single ingredient.
Afterwards
Keep, reheat & pair
Storage
Refrigerate components separately up to 3 days; dress and assemble just before eating.
Freezing
Salads and sandwiches don't freeze; soups freeze beautifully for 3 months.
Reheating
Soups reheat gently on the stove with a splash of water. Sandwiches and salads are best assembled fresh — store components separately.
Make ahead
Batch the components (proteins, dressings, grains) on Sunday; assemble in minutes all week.
Wine pairing
Something light and cold — a crisp white, a spritz, or iced tea.
Beer pairing
A crisp pilsner or wheat beer keeps lunch light.
On the plate
Serve it with
Sides
·
Kettle chips or a simple green salad
·
Quick-pickled vegetables
Garnish
Flaky salt and cracked pepper
A drizzle of good olive oil
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