Name: Tiradito nikkei with ají amarillo, soy and ginger
Prep time: 25 min
Total time: 25 min
Cuisine: Peruvian cuisine
Ingredients: 600 g firm boneless white fish for raw consumption, skinned, pin-boned, cold; 110 ml fresh lime juice, strained; 45 g ají amarillo paste, smooth; 24 ml soy sauce, standard salted; 12 g fresh ginger, finely grated; 8 ml toasted sesame oil; 4 g fine salt; 10 g cilantro leaves, roughly torn; 120 g cucumber, thinly sliced

How to prepare Tiradito nikkei with ají amarillo, soy and ginger

Yield 4 starter plates

Prep 25 minutes

Cook 0 minutes

Passive 0 minutes

Total 25 minutes

Ingredients ↓

Overview

How to prepare Tiradito nikkei with ají amarillo, soy and ginger

Tiradito is defined by thin, deliberately sliced fish rather than the chunky cut used for most ceviches. In Nikkei cooking, Peruvian citrus and chili can meet Japanese seasonings without turning the dish into ordinary sashimi. Here the dressing keeps a recognizable ají amarillo flavour while soy and ginger provide a savoury, aromatic edge.

The chosen fish should be firm, boneless and supplied specifically for raw eating by a reputable fishmonger. A glossy, newly cut slice is part of the appeal, but freshness is not a safety treatment: careful sourcing and refrigeration still matter. The fish is sliced very cold and returned to the refrigerator while the sauce is mixed.

The dressing is whisked rather than cooked, so it must be smooth enough to coat each slice lightly. Lime goes in near service and the finished plate is eaten promptly; prolonged contact with acid would tighten and obscure the fine texture that distinguishes tiradito.

Ingredients

Fish

600 g firm boneless white fish for raw consumption, skinned, pin-boned, cold

Dressing

110 ml fresh lime juice, strained
45 g ají amarillo paste, smooth
24 ml soy sauce, standard salted
12 g fresh ginger, finely grated
8 ml toasted sesame oil
4 g fine salt

Finishing

10 g cilantro leaves, roughly torn
120 g cucumber, thinly sliced

Method

Cold preparation.Chill the serving plates and mixing bowl while checking the 600 g raw-serving fish for any remaining bones. Keep the fish refrigerated until the final slicing. The plates feel cold and the fillet is firm to the touch. Hold raw fish at 4 °C or colder and keep separate from ready-to-eat vegetables.
Whisk the Nikkei dressing.In the cold bowl whisk 110 ml lime juice with 45 g ají amarillo, 24 ml soy sauce, 12 g ginger, 8 ml sesame oil and 4 g salt until the dressing is homogeneous. The yellow dressing looks smooth with no clumps of chili paste.
Slice the fish.On a clean dedicated board use a long sharp knife to cut the chilled 600 g fish across the grain into thin even slices, roughly 3–4 mm thick; arrange in single layers on the chilled plates. The fish slices hold their shape without ragged edges. Use sanitised tools and return fish to the refrigerator if assembly is delayed.
Dress and serve.Divide the 120 g cucumber among the plates, spoon over all the dressing and scatter the 10 g cilantro leaves. Serve at once rather than leaving raw fish in lime. Each slice is lightly coated and clearly visible beneath the sauce. Do not hold the dressed raw dish at room temperature.

Practical

Practical guidance

Serve the tiradito as an individual starter on genuinely cold plates, not on a warm serving board. A little dressing should remain visible around the fish; pouring too much on one spot can leave neighbouring slices dry. Cucumber brings an uncooked, crisp element but should be prepared on a board that has not touched raw seafood. The fish and pre-measured dressing ingredients can be refrigerated separately for the brief period required to prepare the meal. Slice only at service; do not store a dressed raw-fish plate for later consumption. A freezer treatment carried out by a competent supplier addresses some parasite hazards, not all bacteria, and it is not a guarantee of safety. If the sauce seems too dense, check whether the ají paste is unusually concentrated rather than automatically adding unlisted water. Soy sauce gives savoury depth and significant sodium. Keep the salt amount measured rather than adding another spoonful automatically.

Control points

Fish slices tearThe fillet may be too warm or the knife blunt; chill the fish and use long clean strokes rather than sawing.
Dressing overpowers the fishThe soy–ají mixture may be concentrated in one spot; whisk again and distribute in a thin layer.

Nutrition per serving

Serving size1 of 4 starter plates
Calories186 kcal
Carbohydrate6 g
Protein30 g
Fat5 g
Fibre1 g
Sodium1020 mg

Allergens and food safety

Contains raw fish and soy and sesame allergens. Lime juice does not cook or sterilise fish. Previously frozen fish may have reduced parasite risk but is not free of bacterial risk; pregnant people, young children, older adults and immunocompromised diners should avoid it.

Closing

Result: A cold Peruvian-Japanese fish dish cut into delicate slices and dressed at the table with lime, soy, ginger and ají amarillo.
Key control: Work cold, and add fresh citrus only immediately before service.