Recipe: Chef Cristy Kisner’s Mango Ceviche with Shrimp

Cristy Kisner—chef, author and mom of five—is sharing ways to enjoy healthy, gluten-free and delicious recipes through her Roswell Café as well as her cookbook, Cristy’s Kitchen. 

Cristy began her culinary journey inspired by her Peruvian heritage and her family's dietary needs. From an early age, she and her husband, Sebastián, faced various health issues with their daughters, including respiratory allergies, eczema and a rare autoimmune disease. This experience led Cristy to recognize the profound impact of food on our health and the possibility of enjoying both healthy and delicious meals, simultaneously.

Below is a recipe from her cookbook for mango ceviche with shrimp. Enjoy!

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Mango Ceviche with Shrimp

From Cristy’s Kitchen by Cristy Kisner

Ceviche is basically the Peruvian national dish. The name comes from the Quechua word siwichi, which means “fresh or tender fish.” It is believed that between the second and fifth centuries, on the Peruvian coast, the Mochica culture prepared a dish based on fresh fish, which was lightly cooked with the juice of a local fruit called tumbo. (By the way, if you come across this fruit, you have to try it—it’s one of my favorites! Tumbo is a relative of the passion fruit and has high amounts of vitamin C, a spectacular sweet-and-sour taste, and soft, velvety-smooth skin that turns yellowish when ripe. The juice is a delicacy. When I was a child, I ate tumbo just by splitting it in two and sprinkling a little sugar on it.) After the conquest, the Spanish incorporated lime to give the ceviche more of a cooked texture.

Recipes for ceviche have evolved over time. When I was a child, as was the tradition, my dad left the fish “cooking” in lime juice for a long, long time. Today, that is considered a travesty; modern ceviche must be served and eaten instantly—fresh, practically raw, and very cold. Ceviche has become an emblematic dish and as diverse and fresh as the ingredients are in Peru. Personally, I like all versions of ceviche: fish, seafood, mushroom, mango, octopus, shrimp. And if you can find Peruvian giant corn to accompany it, you’ll have a luxurious dish.

Chile salsa

2 habanero peppers

4 jalapeño peppers

4 serrano peppers

1 red onion, finely diced

1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Maras salt or sea salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/4 cup (60 g) fresh lime juice (from 2 limes)

3 tablespoons (60 g) balsamic vinegar of Modena

Extra virgin olive oil

Apple cider vinegar

Ceviche

1 medium red onion (315 g), julienned

1 unripe (green-skinned) mango (442 g)

3/4 pound (400 g) medium (41/50) or large (31/35) raw wild-caught shrimp, fresh or frozen (and thawed), peeled, deveined, and tails removed

1/2 to 3/4 cup (120 to 180 g) fresh lime juice

Sea salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 firm peach (182 g), thinly sliced

1/4 cup (25 g) chopped cilantro

2 medium sweet potatoes, baked, peeled, and sliced into rounds, for serving (see page 000)

Special equipment needed: 32-ounce mason jar with a lid

Directions

1. For the salsa: Cut the chile peppers into small dice, removing the seeds and veins according to how spicy you want the salsa. Mix the peppers, onion, and cilantro well in a bowl, adding salt and pepper.

2. Transfer the mixture to a 32-ounce mason jar and add the lime juice and balsamic vinegar. Eyeball the jar and check where the chiles would be half-covered. Fill the jar with olive oil to that level, then pour in apple cider vinegar until the chiles are completely covered. Seal with the lid and shake well. The salsa can be eaten immediately or refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

3. For the ceviche: Fill a large bowl with ice water and place the julienned onion in it to keep it crisp until use.

4. For the mango you can choose one of two ways: unpeeled (believe me, it’s very good) or peeled. Either way, cut it into thin slices.

5. Place the shrimp in a large bowl. Stir in the lime juice, salt, and pepper and let it rest for about 2 minutes. Add the mango, peach, and cilantro and toss well to combine.

6. To serve, place the ceviche on a plate and top with onions and salsa to taste. Serve immediately with some room-temperature sweet potato slices.