This Vegan Ceviche Recipe Swaps Fish for Palm Hearts

With temperatures rising, it’s time to start thinking about refreshing meals. A light appetizer you might consider making is ceviche, a Latin American dish traditionally consisting of raw fish, chili, lime juice, salt, and onion. In this vegan version of the recipe, the Institution of Culinary Education swaps the seafood for meaty (but meat-free) hearts of palm.  

As mentioned above, ceviche often calls for chili peppers, which might be too spicy for some. In that case, Chef Missy Smith-Chapman, the lead chef instructor of plant-based culinary arts at ICE’s Los Angeles campus, tells Mental Floss that you can skip the jalapeño. If you want to leave it in while dialing down the heat, she suggests removing the membrane and seeds to make the veggie less spicy. 

If you’re hosting people last minute, this vegan ceviche comes together fast. After chopping all the ingredients, all you have to do is thoroughly mix them in a bowl and let the mixture marinate in the fridge for at least one hour. To serve, top the dish with diced avocado and cilantro and plate it with tortilla chips. Now you have an effortless and tasty appetizer. Eating it within an hour of chilling is best, but you can store the dish for up to two days in the fridge.

The Institute of Culinary Education has more delicious recipes in store at its New York and Los Angeles campuses. You can peruse the curricula of high-quality courses in areas like pastry arts and hospitality management on ICE’s website.

Palm Heart Ceviche

Yield: 6-8 portions

Ceviche Ingredients:

1 14-ounce can or jar hearts of palm, drained and sliced (1/4 inch) 

2 chopped tomatoes

2 small sweet red peppers, small dice

½ red onion, thinly sliced 

½ to 1 jalapeño, small dice

1 tablespoon capers with brine, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

2 Persian cucumbers, small dice

4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro 

½ cup lime juice

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon dulse

Garnish Ingredients:

1 tablespoon cilantro leaves

1 avocado

1 bag tortilla chips

1. Mix all ingredients of the ceviche in a bowl until well combined.
2. You can eat it immediately, although it’s better to let the ceviche marinate in the fridge covered for at least one hour.
3. Keep it in a sealed container in the fridge for one to two days.

If you’d like to try a version of ceviche with fish, check out this recipe made with halibut. You can also follow either ceviche recipe with an eggless, vegan pavlova for dessert.

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