I came to the fish lovers table fairly late. Growing up during the 1970’s, fish was usually an overcooked, under-seasoned, grey looking piece of protein I pushed around my plate while pretending to eat. But those were also the days of the clean plate club, so I was often forced to eat a lot more than I wanted too!
It wasn’t until sushi took hold here in America that I realized how wonderful fish is. For the first time I was tasting fish in its purest form, raw and unseasoned. I quickly took my seat at the fish lovers table.
I recently joined a CSF, or Community Supported Fishery. A what, you say? Just like a CSA delivers produce straight from the farmer, each week I get a portion of seafood that has been freshly caught off the coast of Santa Barbara, California. Every week before I pick up my seafood from my local farmer’s market, I get an email informing me of what type of seafood I will receive, who caught my fish and the methods used to catch it! Really, talk about knowing where your food comes from!
The fish is never frozen, never flown thousands of miles to get to market. And most importantly, the fish does not smell fishy. The sign of very fresh fish is that it smells clean, briny like the sea, but never fishy.
If you live in a coastal community, check to see if there is a local CSF available for you to join. I highly recommend Community Seafood, which is my local CSF. If you live in the Los Angeles area, check them out. They deliver to 3 different farmer’s markets in the Los Angeles area.
Last week the fishermen caught local wild California Halibut. I had just harvested some lemongrass and serrano chiles from my little organic garden, so making Wild California Halibut Ceviche seemed like a no-brainer.
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Passive Time | 2 hours |
| Servings |
appetizers
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- 1/2 pound fresh halibut cut into 1/4
- 1/2 cup lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 3-4 inch section of fresh lemongrass white part only, cut in half lengthwise
- 1 each scallion thinly sliced
- 12 each orange cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 each small Serrano chile thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt flakes
Ingredients
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- In a medium bowl place the halibut, lemon juice, lemongrass and scallion.
- Gently mix to coat the fish with the lemon juice and herbs. Place the halibut into the refrigerator to chill for 2 hours.
- After 2 hours, check the fish to make sure it is cooked. The fish should be opaque.
- Once chilled, drain the fish well, remove and discard the lemongrass.
- Return the fish and scallions to the bowl, add the remaining ingredients.
- Gently stir the ingredients together, then let the ceviche sit for 1/2 hour for the flavors to meld.
- Serve the ceviche with tortilla chips or crackers.
Wow, that looks fabulous, and how great to get fresh fish every week! Didn’t know about this CSF.