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    Home » Recipes » Vegetarian

    Fishless Ceviche

    Published: Apr 11, 2016 · Updated: Nov 9, 2022 by Maggie Unzueta

    This Fishless Ceviche is an easy recipe that is great for parties, vegetarians, and fish haters. Hope you enjoy!
    Jump to Recipe
    Fishless Ceviche in a bowl and a plate served with ceviche and tortilla chips

    This Fishless Ceviche is for all my party friends. There’s always one vegetarian at a dinner party or social event. Or someone in the group is on a “can’t eat real” food diet. If you’ve ever hosted a party, you know the challenges of planning food. You have to try this recipe. It’s perfect for parties. Not just to please your picky party guests, but it’s also ridiculously easy-to-make. It has to be made ahead of time, and it tastes just like the real thing. It’s gill-free and guilt-free. 🙂

    This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Table of Contents

    • 1 More Ceviche Recipes:
    • 2 Serve with:
    • 3 Hungry for More?
    • 4 Fishless Ceviche
      • 4.1 Ingredients
      • 4.2 Instructions
      • 4.3 Notes
      • 4.4 Nutrition

    More Ceviche Recipes:

    • Ceviche de Camarón
    • Ceviche de Pescado
    • Salmon Ceviche
    • Scallop Ceviche
    Cauliflower

    When I first moved to San Diego, I only ate meat once a week. I wasn’t on a diet or aspiring to be a vegetarian. I just didn’t eat a lot of meat. Most people associate Mexican food with heavy meat dishes. Really, that’s not always the case. There are plenty of vegetarian meals in our cuisine. We love our beans- yes, pinto beans but also lima beans and garbanzo beans. Here in the US, we have such a great variety in our stores. Mexican grocery stores seem to be more limited. That’s why Mexican Vegetarian meals are common.

    Chopped Cauliflower

    I can’t take full credit for this recipe. At my brother’s wedding reception, they had fishless ceviche as a vegetarian option. It was such a big hit amongst all us Mexicanos. Everyone was talking about it. I had to recreate it and share it with all of you. The lime juice will break down the cauliflower to resemble the texture of fish, but you have to chop it up into little pieces to resemble the fish. If you try to serve it right away, the cauliflower will still be hard. So plan ahead.


    Ingredients for Fishless Ceviche - Lemon, cilantro, tomato, onions and chile

    Serve with:

    • Authentic Horchata Recipe
    • Ejotes a la Mexicana
    • Roasted Mexican Sweet Potatoes
    • Papas a la Mexicana

    Note: Since this does not have to be refrigerated, you can take it to BBQs and not worry about poisoning people. Ha!

    Serve with homemmade tostada shells or totopos. Hope you enjoy this simple vegetarian dish!

    Hungry for More?

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    Did you make this recipe? Please rate the recipe below!
    Fishless Ceviche - you won't even know there isn't any fish in this vegetarian dish- by Mama Maggie's Kitchen

    Fishless Ceviche

    This Fishless Ceviche is an easy recipe that is great for parties, vegetarians, and fish haters. Hope you enjoy!
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Vegetarian
    Cuisine: Mexican
    Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 1 hour hour
    Total Time: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 38kcal
    Author: Maggie Unzueta

    Ingredients

    • 1 head cauliflower chopped into 4 large pieces
    • 1 teaspoon salt (to cook the cauliflower)
    • water enough to cover the caulifower
    • 1 onion finely diced
    • 3 tomatoes finely diced
    • 1 bunch cilantro chopped
    • 2 jalapenos finely diced
    • 1 cucumber peeled and diced
    • 4 juice limes
    • salt to taste

    Instructions

    • Wash and chop the cauliflower into 4 large pieces.
    • Place in a pot along with 1 teaspoon salt and cover it with water.
    • Cover and bring to a boil.
    • Cook for 3-4 minutes.
    • Drain and let cool completely.
    • Once cooled, dice the cauliflower into small pieces.
    • In a large bowl, add cauliflower, and all the remaining ingredients.
    • Mix well. Taste for salt.
    • Serve with tortilla chips, tostadas, or saltine crackers.

    Notes

    You can also add diced avocado or diced mango to this dish. 
    Serve with your favorite hot sauce. 
    The cauliflower does not have to be cooked. Let all the ingredients sit overnight in the fridge. The lime juice will soften up the cauliflower. 

    Nutrition

    Calories: 38kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 0.4g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.05g | Sodium: 316mg | Potassium: 410mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 517IU | Vitamin C: 48mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Mention @MamaMaggiesKitchen or tag #MamaMaggiesKitchen!
    Fishless Ceviche in a bowl and a plate served with ceviche and tortilla chips

    More Mexican Vegetarian Recipes

    • Sopa de Elote topped with cheese, cream, and fresh cilantro.
      Sopa de Elote (Mexican Corn Soup)
    • A tostaguac served on a plate and ready to eat.
      Tostaguac (Guacamole Tostadas)
    • The Halloween Taco Dip served in a baking dip.
      Halloween Taco Dip
    • Totopos (or Mexican tortilla chips) served with guacamole.
      Totopos (Tortilla Chips)

    About Maggie Unzueta

    Maggie Unzueta is the writer/blogger, photographer, recipe developer, videographer, and creator of In Mama Maggie's Kitchen. She has been developing easy and authentic Mexican food, Mexican-inspired recipes, and traveling tips since 2010. From family recipes to her extensive travels throughout Mexico, she brings traditional Mexican flavors from South of the Border and into your kitchen. Maggie has been featured in notable culinary websites and other media outlets. For more details, check out her About page.

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Dirk

      November 24, 2017 at 9:24 am

      How big/What kind are the tomatoes in the recipe? Thanks.

      Reply
      • Maggie Unzueta

        November 29, 2017 at 3:29 pm

        I used Roma tomatoes.

        Reply
    2. Anonymous

      September 11, 2016 at 9:12 am

      do you cook the cauliflower first?

      Reply
      • Maggie Unzueta

        February 15, 2017 at 8:15 am

        No. It gets soft from the lime juice but not mushy. The texture turns out to be something like the fish in traditional ceviche. Hope you enjoy!

        Reply
    3. Chrissa - Physical Kitchness

      April 11, 2016 at 7:05 pm

      This is SO creative!!! Sometimes I love ceviche, sometimes the fishiness gets me. This is perfection!

      Reply
      • Maggie Unzueta

        April 21, 2016 at 5:18 pm

        Thank you! Hope you give this a try. 🙂

        Reply

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