You Should Try Topping Tostadas With Shrimp Ceviche
Take a seat, tacos. It's time for crispy tostadas to take center stage. Hailing from the state of Oaxaca, Amigos Food shares that tostada has been around for centuries and was actually created as a way to use stale tortillas. Currently, a beloved Mexican street food, tostadas focus less on repurposing leftovers and more on featuring fresh and quality ingredients. Adding a bit of texture and crunch, these fried corn tortillas make the perfect vessel for a host of fresh toppings, especially a bright and citrusy shrimp ceviche!
Like an open-faced taco, Tasteatlas explains that a tostada (which means "toasted" in Spanish) is a dish that consists of a toasted (or fried) tortilla that's topped with ingredients like shredded beef or grilled shrimp, along with beans, lettuce, avocado, and cotija cheese. Interestingly, tostadas are also often made with thicker tortillas to support the weight of all of the toppings, notes Backyard Taco.
What's particularly unique about tostada is that the sturdy corn tortilla acts as the perfect base for almost any imaginable ingredient. So after baking or frying it, there's infinite room to play with flavor. Layer on anything from black bean purée to chipotle aioli, and pickled jalapeños to fresh mango salsa. And, of course, customizing proteins is also a fun way to jazz up a tostada.
Citrusy shrimp ceviche balances salty tostadas
Despite the fact that many shrimp tostadas feature grilled shrimp, MasterClass recommends opting for aguachile ceviche de camaron or shrimp ceviche that's prepared by marinating raw shrimp in lime juice and chiles that have been blended with water. While the kick of heat adds dimension to the dish, even a standard shrimp ceviche prepared with just citrus can create a delicious outcome as the acidity creates balance, cutting through the fattiness and saltiness of the fried tortilla.
A great no-cook protein, shrimp ceviche is a stunning way to emphasize vibrant flavors and fresh seafood. According to MexGrocer, you'll know when your ceviche is ready to use once your seafood has turned an opaque white, indicating that the lemon or lime juice has "cooked" the fish.
While the tostada might look stunning, it can be a bit tricky to eat since the entire surface area is loaded with tasty toppings. To avoid making a giant mess (and dripping ceviche liquid everywhere), Foods Guy suggests using both hands to hold the tostada and take small bites, eating from left to right until you've finished. Inevitably, toppings will be lost, but you can easily use a fork to scoop ingredients back onto the crisp tortilla. Tostada Tuesdays are starting to sound pretty appealing now, aren't they?