Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Eating ceviche in Lima



I was pleasantly surprised when I got to Lima to discover that Peru is known for its seafood and that ceviche is one of the most famous dishes in Lima. This might not come as a surprise to a normal person, but to a topographical cretin such as myself, finding out that Peru wasn't the landlocked country I had imagined and that Lima is actually adjacent to some ocean or other was quite the shocker. Remember, I lived in London for six months before I realized it wasn't on the coast.

Anyway, they love their ceviche in Lima and cevicherías are all over Miraflores, the tony neighborhood that I stayed in. As a group of three we went in and ordered ceviche for two and couldn't finish the enormous plate of  frighteningly-sized corn kernels (at least 3 times the size of that wussy "sweet corn" you get at home) and mixed seafood marinating in lime juice. I think this may be because ceviche is meant to be savored with many, many drinks. Many more than we were willing to savor it with, anyway.

Nauseatingly, you can start off your meal by ordering a glass of Leche de Tigre, or Tiger's Milk. That would be a shot of the juice left at the bottom of the plate, and sometimes served with a shot of pisco, Peru's favorite liquor. The perfect way to chase a Peruvian hangover.

6 comments:

  1. Is it expensive in Lima? I just left Guatemala and was surprised that sell it for $10 everywhere, I was hoping it would be something closer to my backpacker's budget.

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  2. Yo quiero el ceviche!

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  3. I can't actually remember how much it cost--I've had to block out prices since leaving Asia. But I'm pretty sure it was in the $5 range, but that might have been for the plate for 2. Prices in Lima varied from one extreme to the other, but overall was fairly reasonable.

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  4. red faced ambiguousMay 20, 2010 at 6:58 PM

    Gorgeous. What kind of fish? Is it sick-making?

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  5. Nothing makes me sick anymore. Remember? I told my body to man up.

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