Ceviche

This classic ceviche recipe makes a perfect party appetizer because it's easy to prepare and can be marinated a day ahead. Celebrated chef Rick Bayless combines fish with lime and spicy chiles, then piles the mixture on tortilla chips for a no-fuss presentation. The recipe is equally delicious with snapper, halibut or other fresh fillets with mild flavor.

With only a few ingredients, Rick Bayless's salpimentado (salt-and-pepper) ceviche is typical of what one would find at stands around the southern tip of Baja. Cooks often make it with sierra, a large and meaty Mexican fish, but tuna works just as well.

Aguachile (chile water) is a vibrant sauce made with fresh chiles, herbs and cucumbers that’s fantastic on any type of fish or shellfish. Chef David Goody serves aguachile with thinly sliced scallops that have been just cured in fresh lime juice.

Peruvian corn has been cultivated for at least 3,000 years. An especially starchy variety, the corn is a little hard to find in the US but well worth seeking out for this recipe—it beautifully balances the sharp, acidic ceviche marinade.

A refreshing starter or light main course, Sang Yoon's Thai take on a Latin American classic is a perfect balance of crunchy, tender, sweet, hot and tart.

Allen Susser prefers to use firm white-fleshed fish like red snapper and grouper, as well as conch and rock shrimp, for ceviches, because they keep their shape well. "Dice the fish into uniform pieces, so they cook evenly in the citrus juice," he advises.

Cevicherias, which are popular throughout Peru, are now appearing in the US. That’s due at least in part to renowned Peruvian chef Gastón Acuria, who’s opened branches of his Lima restaurant La Mar in San Francisco and Manhattan. In New York City, La Mar chef Victoriano López makes this recipe with ají limo paste, a Peruvian ceviche staple made from tiny ají chiles.

Peruvian ceviches often include choclo, a type of large, chewy corn that can be hard to find in the States. Fresh sweet corn, though less typical, makes a fine substitute.

mkgallery Best New Chef 2014 Paul Qui is Filipino, and this rich, delicious kinilaw (a dish made from raw ingredients) is his go-to raw-seafood starter. It's a simple combination of fish with coconut milk, vinegar, chiles, ginger and cilantro.

David Frenkiel and Luise Vindahl love to marinate vegetables in a bright, fresh lime juice dressing, just like other cooks would prepare fish for ceviche. In the winter, they give sprouts the ceviche treatment. In summer, they toss the dressing with fresh corn, shelling beans, tomatoes and nectarines.

The extra tang in the ceviche marinade comes from an unexpected ingredient: juice from pickled jalapeños.