Raw Scallop Ceviche5 (1)
Preparing seafood raw is a beautiful way to eat these wonderful proteins. There is something magical about the pureness of eating seafood raw. Almost like you’re plucking it straight out of the ocean and directly onto your plate. Our Raw Scallop Ceviche preparation has exactly that feeling when eating it. It is a lovely, fresh, light appetizer dish that celebrates the hero of the dish – these beautiful Scallops
Finding the best quality Seafood is critical when eating it raw
Sometimes it is difficult to know what is considered the best quality when you’re out shopping for Seafood. Unless you are a trained chef or Fish Monger, sometimes it can be very deceiving when faced with a wall of seemingly delicious looking Seafood. Don’t always be fooled by price too. Just because it costs more doesn’t always necessarily mean it will be better quality
For Scallops, the best quality is hand dived Scallops. The reason for this is that machines aren’t used to dredge Scallops beds from the ocean, they are individually picked by divers. Why this is important is that the dredged Scallops will very likely have sand and grit in them from the dredging process. There is also a chance that the Scallops may be damaged during the farming process. So, it may not be as fresh as the hand dived versions
If you able to build up a bit of trust with your local fish monger they are a fantastic resource and will steer you in the right direction. Just tell them what you are planning on preparing and they should hopefully guide you in the right direction when it comes to the best quality produce for your cooking (or in this case, your raw preparation!)
Acid from the Lemon Juice will ‘cook’ the raw Scallops in the Ceviche
Ceviche’s are such amazing dishes, as they are the purest expression of highlighting the natural flavor of the ingredients you are using. Scallops are a fantastic protein to use in Ceviche. They are not overly ‘fishy’ in smell or taste and have a lovely meaty texture to them. They are notoriously quite a difficult Seafood to cook, as they can overcook and turn rubbery very easily
Thus is the beauty of a Ceviche, is that the protein bathes in a beautiful acidic sauce that will essentially ‘cook’ the Scallops. Acid and Seafood are a brilliant combination, so let your delicious Scallops sit in the Ceviche marinade (whose primary ingredient is Lemon) for about 30 minutes before serving to let the acidic cooking process happen
Flavor your dish with fresh, beautiful ingredients to give the Raw Scallop Ceviche a real pop
The preparation process for Ceviche not only cooks the Scallops, but it also infuses them with all kinds of delicious flavors that you have added to the sauce. For this recipe we are keeping it simple by adding some delicious ingredients which give the Raw Scallop Ceviche dish a slightly sweet and spicy flavor
Dice up about ¼ cup of ripe Cherry Tomatoes and add them to the sauce to add a lovely sweetness to the dish. Tomatoes are a great pairing with Seafood and balance beautifully with the Lemon. We also love adding Jalapenos to the dish. Not too many to overwhelm the recipe, but finely chopping up ½ a Jalapeno will bring a beautiful freshness and of course, heat to the dish
Be generous with the seasoning in the sauce too. We are simply using Salt, but you can add a little bit of Pepper too if you like. Just remember to taste the Ceviche sauce for seasoning and adjust until it’s exactly to your flavor preference before adding the Scallops to marinade
Portions for this recipe are for 4 people to enjoy 2 Scallops each
Scallops aren’t the cheapest ingredient to buy, and they are quite decadent to eat. We have prepared this recipe for 8 Scallops in total. Best shared between 4 people, so 2 Scallops each. Of course, you can adjust the quantities, and if you are cooking for 2 people we’d suggest halving the ingredients in the recipe below
We love including our Raw Scallop Ceviche recipe as part of a large Seafood Platter dish, perfect for the holidays. Here are a couple of other amazing raw Seafood dishes that we love to pair with these Scallops in our Holiday Seafood Platter
- Easy Homemade Tuna Tartare
- Spot Prawn Ceviche with Garlic and Chili
- Shrimp Cocktail
- Salmon Ceviche with Coconut
So why not whip up a beautiful Seafood feast for your next celebration and include these delicious Scallops!
Recipe Details
4 people
5 minutes
30 minutes
35 minutes
Raw Scallop Ceviche Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 Scallops, roe removed
- ½ cup Cherry Tomatoes, finely diced
- ¼ Red Onion, finely diced
- ½ Jalapeno, diced
- ¼ cup Scallions, finely sliced
- Juice of 4 Lemons
- 1 tsp. Salt
Instructions
- In a medium sized bowl add the Lemon Juice, Cherry Tomatoes, Red Onion, Jalapeno, Scallions, and Salt. Mix well and then taste. Adjust the seasoning to match your flavor preference
- Place the Scallops into the bowl and carefully mix through to ensure the Scallops are coated in the liquid. Leave to marinade for 30 minutes, allowing the acid in the liquid to cook the Scallops. Stir with a spoon 3-4 times to ensure an even coating on the Scallops
- To serve, wash the Scallops Shells under cold water then place 1 – 2 Scallops into the Scallop Shells. Drizzle a generous amount of sauce over the Scallops including an even amount of the ingredients. Serve immediately with a wedge of Lemon on the side
If your Scallops did not come with their Shells that is totally fine. Serve the Raw Scallop Ceviche in small bowls. You can even get super creative and serve individual scallops on serving spoons for a fun presentation!
We hope you enjoyed this fun appetizer. For more delicious Appetizers check out our page here. We’ve also got a dedicated page for Seafood Appetizers here, so why not make that Seafood feast today!
Happy Cooking!