A couple of weeks ago for a school Spanish project, we were asked to study a Spanish speaking country and to evaluate the different cultural elements of that country. My group and I decided to study Panama and of course, since I am really into cooking and food, I decided to study the food from Panama. While doing this project, I studied famous Panamanian dishes such as Sancocho, Carimañola, and Ceviche. Although I studied all of these different dishes, the only one I cooked was the Ceviche as it was the simplest of the three dishes and was made from ingredients that I had on hand or could buy at my local grocery store. With that being said, here are the ingredients I used and steps I took to make this Ceviche from Panama.
Ceviche From Panama
Recipe Courtesy of: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/panamanian-ceviche-50115861
Ingredients:
- 1 pound of Corvina fish— When I made this Ceviche, I used Halibut as it was fresh at my local market and reasonably priced. Sea Bass also works well although it can sometimes be a bit more pricey. I would generally say that as long as it is a white fish and fresh you should be good to go for this Ceviche. But, if you really want to be traditional to Panama then you should use Corvina.
- 1 1/2 cups of diced red onion— yellow onion can also be used here but red onion is preferred
- 1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 cup diced/finely chopped celery— you can cut the celery how ever you would like for this dish but smaller pieces are definitely preferred so that you do not get big pieces in your mouth.
- 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
- 1/2 cup diced and deseeded Jalapeño or other type of chili— optional!
- salt to taste
- tortilla chips to eat the Ceviche with
Preparation:
- Cut the fish you bought into bite size or smaller pieces— you want the fish to be in pretty small pieces so that you can eat it easily.
- After cutting your fish, stick it into a large bowl and set it aside.
- Prep the remaining ingredients and then place them into the bowl with the fish. Stir with a spoon to combine.
- Cover the bowl with the ingredients in it with saran wrap and place it into the fridge for 4 to 6 hours to allow the fish to essentially cook in the lemon juice.
- After 4 to 6 hours, take your Ceviche out of the fridge and serve it with tortilla chips. Enjoy!
Overall, this Ceviche was super fun to make and also very easy. While researching this dish, I was able to learn why it is an important dish to Panama as well as what ingredients they use to make it unique. Panama has a lot of fish markets along the coast so they are able to receive fresh fish daily to create seafood dishes and Ceviche is one of them. The items that separate this dish and make it a Panamanian style Ceviche are the fish type, the use of lemon juice and the use of celery. Other countries often use a different type of fish such as red snapper but this Panamanian style Ceviche uses Corvina. Also, oftentimes certain places use lime juice to cure the fish for the Ceviche whereas in Panama they use lemon juice. Finally, the Panamanian style Ceviche uses celery to add a crunch to the dish which is very unique and no other country seems to use it. I really recommend making this Ceviche if you are looking for a fun and simple summer dish that is also cultural.
Guacamole!
Although guacamole is a pretty simple dish that many people already know how to make, I wanted to share some of my own tips on how to make this dish and make it taste super fresh and delicious. The reason I made this guacamole is because I received some avocados from my uncle that were from his neighbors tree in Southern California. I believe that one of the keys to good guacamole is fresh avocados that are super ripe. Anyways, without giving too much away, here are the ingredients and recipe that I used to make this fresh guacamole.
Guacamole Ingredients:
- 5 or 6 really ripe avocados– use more or less depending on how much guacamole you would like to make
- 2 ripe roma tomatoes diced
- 1 red onion diced
- 2 limes juiced
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- Salt to taste
- 1/2 jalapeño deseeded and diced– optional!
- tortilla chips to eat the guacamole with
Preparation
- Cut The Avocados in half and take out the seed. Scoop out the avocado from both sides using a spoon and put it into a large bowl.
- Proceed to add the tomatoes, cilantro, red onion, lime juice, Worcestershire sauce and jalapeño (if you are using it) to the bowl with the avocados.
- Season the guacamole with a generous amount of salt and then stir the mixture together to combine.
- Taste the guacamole to make sure that it has the correct amount of salt and acid from the lime juice. If you need to, add more lime juice or more salt to taste. Once the guacamole is seasoned to your liking, it is time to enjoy it with your tortilla chips!
This guacamole, although simple, was very fun for me to make and also super delicious. The key to this guacamole is the freshness of the avocados as well as the seasoning. My dad was the one that told me to add Worcestershire sauce to the guacamole which added another depth of flavor to the dish and helped to bring out the other flavors as well. Also, the amount of salt and lime juice that you use is key to how your guacamole tastes and definitely makes it taste super fresh. Overall, I really enjoyed making this guacamole and I would recommend making it for a simple appetizer or snack when you get the chance.
Happy Birthday To My Grandma Mummi!
To close out this week’s blog post, I wanted to give a shoutout to my grandma who is celebrating her 80th birthday this Wednesday! My grandma and I have had many great years together and she has taught me many life skills that I have and will continue to implement into my life. From teaching me how to cook some of her favorite dishes to taking me out to walk with her friends each weekday I am in Sonoma, I have certainly learned a lot from grandma. Mummi, thank you for all you have taught me over the years and for all the great times we have had together! Although I may not have accepted all your advice when you first gave it to me, I now certainly understand all the advice you have given me and have been working to implement the skills you have taught me into my life. I still remember the stories you have told me over the years about how when I was a baby you used to take me out in the stroller to walk with the walking group in the morning just because I enjoyed it so much. I wanted to let you know that I am working hard to achieve the goal that you told Pops you wanted to see at least one of your grandchildren achieve in your lifetime: college. Mummi, you are only one year away from seeing your first grandchild go to college and to seeing your dream come to fruition. Happy Birthday Mummi and I hope 80 is one of your best years yet!
That is all I have for you in this blog post. I hope you enjoyed reading about how to make Ceviche from Panama and guacamole, two easy appetizer dishes that can be served for any occasion. I know I really enjoyed making these two dishes and I hope you get the chance to make them in the near future and enjoy making them as much as I did.
Walker's World 