Ceviche with fennel and pink grapefruit

This is a fresh and light meal. It can be served as a starter or a main course. Ceviche is considered one of Peru’s national dishes and is the preparation of raw fish with lime juice. The acid of the lime denatures the protein of the fish and thus “cooks” it. There are many recipes, following my variation.

Ingredients | Serves 4

400 g	Fish e.g. Cod
4	Fresh limes
2	Medium-size fennel with fennel green
2	Pink grapefruit
200 ml	Carrot juice
4 Tbsp	neutral oil (sunflower, rapeseed)
1 Tbsp	Tarragon mustard or plain mustard
3 tsp	Tarragon flavoured mustard (or sweet mustard)
	Salt and pepper to season

Preparation

Cut and remove the bottoms and stems from the fennel tubers. Pluck the fennel green and set it aside. Use a kitchen slicer to slice the fennel finely. Then sprinkle a little salt over the slices, toss well, and set aside for 30 minutes.
Cut the fish fillets into 5 mm slices with a sharp knife and place them in a flat porcelain or glass dish – do not use a metal one! Then pour the juice of the four limes over the fish, cover, and put the dish in the fridge to marinate. After 10 minutes, turn the fish slices and place them in the cold for another 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut away the peel of the Pink Grapefruits with a knife and cut out the segments without the membranes.
Mix the carrot juice with the tarragon mustard (can be bought in gourmet shops) and the oil to a sauce, season with a little salt and pepper. The sauce is slightly sweet and will balance the citrusy fish.
Take the fish out of the fridge. The pieces of fish are «cooked» by the acid of the limes now and should be snow-white.

Serving | Spoon the sauce on flat plates, place the fennel on top. Continue to drain the fish slices and place them together with the pink grapefruit slices on the fennel. Finally, decorate with the plucked fennel green.