Fundación:

Leche de Tigre

Tiger’s Milk

Other than very fresh, top-quality fish, leche de tigre is the most important component in any ceviche. People say the name comes from the sauce’s purported aphrodisiac qualities. It has a powerful, lime juice “bite” that some say is so good, it is hard to stop drinking the “tiger’s milk.” There is another story that I will keep to myself.

Any extra tiger’s milk is often served in a glass alongside the seafood. You drink it down quickly, like a shot of hard alcohol to clean your palate after the meal (ceviche is typically ordered together with a big helping of battered and fried mixed fish). In the old days, you would just pick up the bowl to drink the juice after you finished, like sipping milk from a cereal bowl. I’m guessing ceviche shop owners got tired of kids like me spilling their leche de tigre all over the floor, but for me, those last messy sips are still one of the best parts of ceviche.

The ingredients vary by region and by ceviche chef, but lime juice is always the base. Regardless, to make a good leche de tigre, the ingredients need to be very cold. Once you have pureed the base ingredients, you have to pour the lime juice into the blender very slowly, with the motor running to emulsify the sauce, the same way you add olive oil to make mayonnaise. Use the best-looking pieces of fish for the ceviche, and save any trimmings or end pieces for the leche de tigre. Don’t make the sauce more than an hour or two before you plan to use it. The lime juice will “cook” the pureed fish in the sauce, so the sauce will lose its bright, fresh flavor and taste like it has been baked (one of my biggest pet peeves with bad ceviche). This is also why all of your ingredients need to be cold before you make the sauce. If you do make the leche de tigre an hour or two ahead, be sure to keep it refrigerated.

The variations that follow are my takes on the different types of the sauce that you’ll find in Peru to go with different seafood dishes (or, in some regions of the country, they simply use different peppers). In California, my regulars asked me to come up with a vegetarian version of ceviche—no small challenge with a raw fish–based dish. But I must admit, even as a die-hard (fish) ceviche fan, I really love the Blackened Eggplant Ceviche (page 87) that came out of that experiment.

• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped firm white-fleshed fish, such as corvina, paiche, striped bass, yellowtail, or halibut
• 1 large or 2 small cloves garlic, quartered
• 1 (½-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• ¼ large stalk celery (tender top end), thinly sliced, plus a few leaves, if you have them
• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped red onion hearts (see page 45) or red onions
• ¾ cup fresh lime juice (from about 6 limes)
• 1½ tablespoons kosher salt
• About 5 small ice cubes

In a blender, combine the fish, garlic, ginger, celery, onion, and a few tablespoons of the lime juice and puree until the ingredients are well combined. With the blender running, add the salt, then very slowly pour in the remaining lime juice so the sauce emulsifies. With the blender still running, add the ice cubes a few at a time until the sauce is smooth and frothy. Use immediately, or refrigerate the leche de tigre for up to 1 hour, or 2 hours if you really must.

Variaciones:

Rocoto Leche de Tigre

Add 1 to 1½ tablespoons rocoto paste, to taste, when pureeing the fish and vegetables.

Ají Amarillo Leche de Tigre

Add 1 to 1½ tablespoons ají amarillo paste, to taste, when pureeing the fish and vegetables.

Leche de Tigre Vegetariano

Omit the fish and add 1 tablespoons rocoto paste, 1 tablespoon tamari, and 1½ teaspoons sesame oil when pureeing the vegetables.