When spending time in the Banderas Bay area, we are always amazed by the delicious seafood. This of course shouldn't come as a surprise since Puerto Vallarta is located on the Pacific Ocean, but perhaps what makes our experience so delicious is that we've had the opportunity to buy fish directly from the fishermen after watching them pull them from the water. Talk about fresh.
A favorite thing to do with this lovely seafood is make a ceviche; blending the fresh flavors of a mahi mahi with lime, cilantro, onion, and tomato is a delicious, cooling lunch or snack.
On our most recent trip, the weather was frequently quite cool in the morning and into the midday, so we decided to make a "warm" version of ceviche, and serve it on some of our freshly toasted bread.
We hope you'll enjoy this recipe as much as we did! We toasted the thick slices of bread, and then dressed them with freshly made aoli before topping them with a mixture of sauteed zucchini and onions. This was the foundation for the "warm ceviche," (shrimp salad) — see the complete recipe below.
CEVICHE INSPIRED GRILLED SHRIMP SALAD ON TOAST
Ingredients
Serves 3-4
For the shrimp salad:
1 lb fresh shrimp, shell-on
2 small roma tomatoes, chopped
1 jalapeno, finely diced
1/2 onion, finely diced
small bunch cilantro, chopped
juice of 1 lime
garlic aoli (see below)
salt + pepper to taste
For the sauteed vegetables:
1 zucchini, thinly sliced
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp butter
salt + pepper to taste
For the aioli:
Yolk from one fresh farm egg
EVOO
1 garlic clove, minced
DIRECTIONS
Sautee the zucchini and the onions in the butter over medium heat until very soft and reduced, about 10 minutes or more. It should be in an almost spreadable state when done.
Grill or griddle the shrimp with shells on. When pink on both sides, set aside on a plate to cool slightly. While shrimp cool, make the aioli; Place the egg yolk in a bowl, and slowly drizzle the olive oil into the bowl in a slow stream. Keep adding EVOO and mixing slowly until the aioli takes on the desired consistency. Add salt if desired, and add the minced garlic, mixing thoroughly. Set aside some of the aioli for the toasts.
Remove the shells from the shrimp, and then chop into coarse pieces. Add the chopped shrimp to the aioli, and mix. Once mixed, add the tomato, onion, jalapeno, and cilantro. Mix again, and then gradually add the lime juice and the salt and pepper to taste.
Toast the bread, and then spread with the reserved aioli. Dress the toasts first with the zucchini onion mix, and then top with the shrimp salad. Enjoy as you watch the sunset.
