Wild sea bass tiradito with makrut lime

A classic Peruvian dish reimagined: thin slices of raw sea bass marinated in a makrut lime-scented leche de tigre, served on a bed of wild rice and garnished with pomegranate, red bell pepper, red onion, and coconut cream.

Ingredients

  • 200 g wild sea bass (fillet, sashimi quality)
  • 120 g wild rice
  • 1 piece makrut lime (fruit)
  • 2 pieces fresh bird's eye chilies
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 15 g fresh ginger
  • 1 bunch fresh cilantro
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce (nuoc-mam)
  • 1 piece red onion
  • 0.5 pieces red bell pepper
  • 0.5 pieces pomegranate
  • 100 ml coconut cream
  • 1 tbsp neutral oil (grapeseed or sunflower)
  • to taste fine salt

Method

  1. Rinse the wild rice in cold water. Pour it into a saucepan with 3 parts water (360 ml) and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, cover, and cook over low heat for 40-50 minutes until the grains are tender and burst. Drain and let cool slightly.
  2. Meanwhile, prepare the makrut lime leche de tigre: finely grate the zest of the makrut lime, then squeeze it to extract the juice. Finely chop the bird's eye chilies (without the seeds for less heat). Peel and grate the garlic and ginger. Finely chop a few sprigs of cilantro (reserve the rest for garnish).
  3. In a blender, combine the makrut lime juice and zest, chilies, garlic, ginger, chopped cilantro, fish sauce, and neutral oil. Blend briefly until you get a smooth sauce. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt if necessary. Keep chilled.
  4. Slice the wild sea bass fillet crosswise on a bias into thin slices, about 3 mm thick. Arrange the slices in a rosette on serving plates.
  5. Generously coat the fish with leche de tigre (about 2-3 tablespoons per plate). Let marinate for 5 minutes at room temperature.
  6. Meanwhile, prepare the garnish: slice the red onion into thin half-moons. Dice the red bell pepper. Seed the pomegranate to extract the arils.
  7. Spread the warm wild rice in the center of the plates or as a bed. Arrange the marinated sea bass slices on the rice.
  8. Sprinkle with red onion, diced red bell pepper, and pomegranate arils. Add a few fresh cilantro leaves. Drizzle with coconut cream. Serve immediately.

Nutrition

Per serving

Energy
584.3 kcal
Protein
28.94 g
Carbohydrate
66.54 g
Fat
20.9 g
Fibre
6.49 g
Calcium
17.27 mg
Iron
0.97 mg
Magnesium
72.5 mg
Indicative, non-medical nutrition estimate; values depend on brands, actual weights, and whether ingredients are raw or cooked.