Vegan Ceviche

Raw Vegan Ceviche

• Coconut meat (2 coconuts young, equals about a cup of meat)
• Lime Juice (1-2 limes squeezed)
• Cucumber (1 whole big English, better peeled)
• Red (or Yellow) Bell Pepper (1)
• Cherry tomatoes (2 cup full’s)
• Red Onion (1 whole small)
• Avocado (If available, 1)
• Jalapeno (1) only if you like hot
• Garlic (4 cloves)
• Dulse Flakes (kelp flakes or just sea salt) (3 tbs full heaping)
• Cilantro (as much fresh as you can, ¾ cup or more)
• Oregano (2 tbs full)
• Coconut water (or plain water) enough to cover everything in a bowl
• Salt and pepper to taste

If you cannot find fresh young coconut, go to a store or market that has an Asian section. Here (Victoria, BC) you can often find frozen coconut meat and it is usually already cut into strips. Thaw before use. If using fresh coconut then slice the meat in to thin strips around 4 cm or 1.5 inches long. Also slice the cucumber, bell pepper tomato and onion the same way. The avocado can be sliced to any sized chucks. Put all in a bowl. Squeeze the limes (you can also use lemon or bottled juice) over the vegetables. Crush the garlic and add. Cut the jalepeno (Can be any hot pepper) into as small of pieces as you can cut them and add. Add the dulse flakes (sea salt), cilantro, oregano and coconutwater (or regular water) into the bowl. Stir with a spoon. Refrigerate for one hour. Even better if it is refrigerated for 24 hours. Only bring the bowl out of the refrigerator when ready to serve. Eat on crackers, as a side dish or on a warm summer day it can be the full meal.

My version is a Mexican style ceviche that I modified from web recipes. I think you could substitute bamboo shoots, cauliflower, hearts of palm or something similar in place of the coconut. I never had real ceviche before. I made this and served it at a potluck with a number of ceviche lovers present. It was next to a shrimp ceviche and a tuna ceviche. Everyone seemed to enjoy mine. I certainly did. Comments and suggestions encouraged. Salud.