“When I first moved to Savannah, Georgia from upstate New York I had the pleasure of cooking with some interns from South America. Although they were only with the company for a short time, we became great friends and still are to this day. While working in a kitchen through the southern summers we spent our downtime going to the beach or just hanging out after our shifts at the restaurant. We would often cook for each other or prepare something to snack on at the beach or grill on the porch to go along with our cooler of ice-cold beer and tequila. One of my favorite items was Peruvian style ceviche.” — David Landrigan, executive chef at Lucky Rooster Kitchen + Bar, Hilton Head, S.C.   

Peruvian Style Ceviche

• 4-6 lbs whole sea bass (snapper or grouper will also work) 
• 5 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced  
• 2 red onions very finely diced and soaked in cold water  
• 4 fresh ears of corn in husks 
• 1 bunch cilantro, chopped  
• 1 quart key lime juice (or regular lime juice) 
• 4 hot peppers (habanero, jalapeno or poblano), seeded and very finely chopped 
• Salt and pepper to taste  

The key to this recipe is of course getting the freshest fish possible — working as a chef, one of the perks is the relationships with local purveyors. Clean fish, skin, and scrape the bones to get any stubborn meat your knife may have missed (don’t forget the cheek meat).  

1. Bring diced sweet potatoes to a boil starting in cold water and cook for about 8-10 minutes after the boil. It’s good practice to do this with root vegetables although the time varies depending on the size of the cut.  
2. While the potatoes boil, prepare the rest of the ingredients. Soaking the red onion mellows out the harshness. Choosing a chili pepper is really up to you — we always went big and used habaneros. On a grill, roast the corn in the husk, dressed with extra virgin olive oil and some salt and pepper, usually about 20 minutes.  
3. When potatoes and corn are cooked, strain potatoes, and remove kernels from the cob and cool both off in the refrigerator.  
4. Dice the fish filet and set into a large non-reactive bowl (not metal).  
5. Drain the onions and set on paper towels to remove the rest of the liquid.  
6. Using a blender, combine the fish scraps and tail pieces with enough key lime juice to cover by 2 inches, salt, pepper, and half of the cilantro and blend until saucy.  
7. In the bowl add the rest of your ingredients and your blended material.  
8. Season with salt and pepper and allow to marinate for 3 hours — usually enough time to get to the beach and get set up!

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