Mixed Seafood Seviche

• Recipe by Michelle Bernstein

Bernstein discovered authentic seviches during a trip to Peru. One of her favorite preparations combines several types of raw seafood with celery, garlic, cilantro, lime juice and lots of salt. The unusual ingredient is ají amarillo, a spicy yellow-pepper paste (sold in tubes) that turns the seviche a bright yellow color. Bernstein prefers to quickly cook most of the seafood with Old Bay seasoning, then add fresh ginger for extra kick.

Ingredients

1. 1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
2. 1/4 pound medium shrimp, shelled and deveined
3. 1/2 pound large sea scallops (about 6)
4. 1/4 pound small squid, bodies cut crosswise into 1/2-inch rings, tentacles left whole
5. 1 dozen littleneck clams, scrubbed
6. 1/2 pound skinless red snapper fillet, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
7. 1 tablespoon kosher salt
8. 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
9. 1 celery rib, minced
10. 1/2 habanero chile, minced
11. 3/4 cup fresh lime juice (5 limes)
12. 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
13. 1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
14. Freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Prepare a medium bowl of ice water. Add the Old Bay seasoning and the shrimp and scallops to the boiling water and cook for 1 minute. With a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp and scallops to the ice water bath. Add the squid to the boiling water and cook for 5 seconds, then transfer to the ice water bath. Add the clams to the saucepan and boil until they open, then transfer them to a separate bowl.
2. Remove the clams from their shells. Drain the shrimp, scallops and squid and pat dry. In a large, shallow dish, combine the shrimp, scallops, squid, clams and snapper. Sprinkle with the salt, ginger, celery and habanero and toss. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. Add the lime juice, cilantro and onion to the seviche. Season with pepper and toss well. Refrigerate for 2 hours, stirring twice. Spoon the seviche into martini glasses and serve.

Make Ahead

The seviche can be refrigerated for up to 4 hours.