French Fridays with Dorie: Winter Ceviche

Dorie Greenspan winter ceviche on eatlivetravelwrite.comAnother week, another fishy French Fridays with Dorie! No I mean seriously. If you are ever thinking about cooking your way through a cookbook and it’s going to take nearly 5 years, make sure you choose recipes evenly across the book at the beginning otherwise you’ll end up with one particular chapter that’s been avoided for too long 😉

This week’s recipe was Winter Ceviche – originally named “Strange Made Up Ceviche” by the lovely Meg Zimbeck of Paris by Mouth who brought this dish to a potluck dinner with Dorie (and who I have had the immense pleasure of spending a day at the Rungis Market with, along with Dorie and Michael in 2013).  The recipe as written calls for scallops to be marinated in lime and lemon juice and mango nectar, then served with some tarragon and finely sliced shallots and some grapes.

I made this last weekend, in the middle of a baby shower I was hosting and realised way too late that I did not have most of the ingredients. In fact, I had tried to get mango nectar the day before, but couldn’t. So I tried for a mango and that plan didn’t work (and then by the time I remembered I didn’t have one I was already marinating the scallops). I also didn’t have luck finding tarragon this week so here’s my “Strange Made Up” version. A simple marinade of lime and lemon juice and zest for the scallops which were then topped with a drizzle of tarragon vinegar and sprinkled with some red onion and shallots.

Though I used tiny scallops and they were sitting in the marinade for 3 hours, Neil said the insides were still a little on the raw side. He ate them and survived so I guess they were fine. Perhaps I should have sliced them in halves? In any case, ceviche is not something I prep that often (and when I do, I prefer a white fish version). Would I make this again with the proper ingredients? Maybe. Ok, probably not. But hey, one less fish dish to make (though I love scallops and it was all I could do to stop myself from searing then and serving with a caramel orange sauce…)

 

Get Dorie Greenspan’s winter ceviche recipe here or on p 177 of Around my French Table.

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24 thoughts on “French Fridays with Dorie: Winter Ceviche”

  1. Yeah, the scallops with the caramel orange sauce was one of my favorite recipes from AMFT—but I also loved this ceviche. Love YOUR made up ceviche, Mardi!

    Reply
  2. Mr. Neil loves ceviche, so this was a fine Sunday lunch to pair with an episode of Downton Abbey.

    Not my favourite of ceviches, to be sure. The flavours were classic enough and citrus popped – but I also found myself thinking I’d prefer my scallops seared.

    I didn’t pair this with a wine this particular outing, but the strong acid can sometimes be a challenge. A wine expert friend loves rose as a match, and I think that might have worked as Mardi remembered the mango. Without, I’d probably go for something like a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Enough acid, and heaps of aromatics.

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  3. First, Mardi, congratulations on being chosen Ms. January (by the Food Revolution gang, I think). I am always proud when a FFWD colleague shines and you certainly have done your share of shining. You are a credit to the Canadian food world for all the right reasons. Now, on to fish. First I credit you with making all these “fishy” recipes. I agree with both you and Liz, that scallops/caramel and orange sauce duo is a favorite of mine also. I’ve never known you to be caught with ingredient-deficit-disorder but think it’s all about You Karma Fish. Nice rescue of the Ceviche and Mr. Neil lived to celebrate another Valentine’s Day!

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    • Mary you are too kind! I am actually OFTEN sans ingredients but we are lucky to live close to stores so Mr Neil is often popping out to pick things up! And phew, yes, Mr Neil survived!

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  4. I never made the scallops caramel and orange I think I’m in need of a make up! Glad Mr. Neil survived. Not my favorite ceviche recipe… I think I’m traditional on this… I like the South American seasoning.

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  5. I am firmly on team “one more fishy dish down”. Like Mr. Neil, I am also surviving. Dreaming of gougers and Gerard’s mustard tart, but still pleased the aspic is behind us. I tasted a teeny slice to say I did it (low bar being held as a goal here….) and then promptly sautéed them. I think I get at least partial credit on this test. PS very cool you got to meet one of the official namesakes of a recipe, and at Rungis no less !!

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  6. Mardi, a beautiful fresh presentation – and kudos for preparing all these “fishy” recipes! Fresh tarragon was not to be found anywhere around here either – to my great dismay, my dear compatriots are not that keen on using that tender French herb.
    Have a nice weekend,
    Andrea

    Reply
  7. Hi Mardi, you made the scallops look very pretty. I subbed mango nectar for peach juice. I found that the scallops stayed a little raw on the inside too, and I survived. The scallops in caramel sauce were the clear winner for me.

    Reply
  8. I did not want to miss another recipe so I did a mini-minified version of three. It was very pretty, but I just could not eat it. Into the pan it went and was delicious.
    Congratulations on being chosen Ms January for the Food Revolution Event, a very interesting
    article.

    Reply
  9. You’re a sport for cranking out the fish dishes. You’re right, we should have been more thoughtful about distribution. I love the seared scallops, though I was never wild about the caramel sauce. I think this would have been nice on a bed of arugula. Congrats on Ms January!

    Reply

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