Name: Holbox-Inspired Aguachile de Camarón
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: ½ cup lime juice (4 limes); ½ Persian cucumber (about 3 ounces), chopped coarse; ½–1 serrano chile , stemmed and chopped coarse (with seeds); ¼ cup cilantro leaves and stems, plus extra sprigs for garnish; 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt; 1 pound extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound), peeled, deveined, tails removed, and cut into thirds; 1 avocado , halved, pitted, and sliced thin; 6 ounces (3 cups) tortilla chips

Why This Recipe Works

This recipe is based on a cook-through with Gilberto Cetina, chef-owner of Holbox, a marisqueria (Mexican seafood restaurant) in South Los Angeles. One of their standout items is their spot prawn aguachile. Aguachile differs from ceviche in that the seafood (shrimp in this case) doesn’t spend enough time in contact with the lime juice marinade to fully cook through. Therefore, it’s imperative to get the freshest shrimp you can find or, in lieu of that, untreated, frozen wild shrimp. Most recipes call for using sliced cucumbers as a garnish on the finished dish, but Cetina purees the cucumber into the marinade of lime juice, serrano chile, cilantro, and sea salt and allows the shrimp to rest in this mixture very briefly before being served. The pureed cucumber helps temper some of the sharpness of the lime juice and heat of the serrano.

Before You Begin

In aguachile de camarón—for which shrimp are briefly marinated in a spicy lime-juice mixture—the shrimp are meant to be eaten nearly raw, which comes with inherent risks. Talk to your fishmonger and let them guide you to the freshest option. If fresh-off-the-boat shrimp are unavailable, it’s best to use frozen wild shrimp that haven’t been treated with salt or additives such as sodium tripolyphosphate. You can substitute 3 ounces of English cucumber for the Persian cucumber. You can decide how much serrano chile to add; keep in mind, however, that aguachile in general is on the spicy side.

Instructions

Process ½ cup lime juice, ½ coarsely chopped Persian cucumber, ½–1 stemmed and chopped serrano chile, ¼ cup cilantro leaves and stems, and 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt in blender until smooth, about 10 seconds; transfer to large bowl.

Add 1 pound extra-large shrimp (peeled, deveined, tails removed, and cut into thirds) to lime juice mixture and toss until evenly combined. Let sit for 3 minutes. Transfer shrimp mixture with juice to shallow platter.

Arrange 1 thinly sliced avocado around perimeter of dish and garnish with extra cilantro sprigs in center. Serve immediately with 6 ounces tortilla chips.