Ceviche is so fresh and loaded with shrimp, tomatoes, cucumbers, and avocados; all marinated in fresh lime juice. For this Mexican Shrimp Cocktail, you can use raw shrimp or cooked shrimp meat (if you want to cut the prep time way down).

Ceviche is an appetizer we’ve probably made a hundred times and it’s among our favorites, right up there with Cowboy Caviar and the wildly popular Guacamole. Shrimp Ceviche is a major crowd-pleasing recipe.

Shrimp ceviche served on tostadas with lime wedges

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Shrimp Ceviche

We got this authentic Mexican ceviche recipe from one of our readers, Blanca Villasenor. The secret ingredient for the best ceviche is Clamato juice which melds the flavors together and makes it one of the freshest and most satisfying appetizers you will try. Thank you so much Blanca for generously sharing your traditional family recipe with us!

Watch the Video

Watch Natasha make this classic Restaurant-style Ceviche. We’ve been loving this recipe for years and have been fine-tuning it over the years. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of this recipe. Also, it’s a true story that my husband and I can polish off the entire batch in one evening in lieu of dinner!

What is Ceviche?

Ceviche has many names including cebiche, seviche, or sebiche. The origin is debated but thought to have it’s roots in Peru. It is a seafood cocktail using fresh fish that is marinated or “cooked” in a large amount of lime juice. It also includes tomatoes, onion, cilantro, and some form of spice or pepper. We love bulking it up with fresh diced cucumber and diced avocado.

How to Cook Shrimp? If you are starting with raw shrimp and want to pre-cook it before adding it to Ceviche, see our Boiled Shrimp Recipe.

Ingredients for Mexican shrimp cocktail with cooked or raw shrimp, limes, jalapeno, tomatoes, red onion, avocado, cilantro and clamato juice

How to Make Ceviche

  1. Put chopped shrimp in a large bowl and stir in 1 cup of fresh squeezed lime juice. Refrigerate and marinate (1 1/2 to 2 hours for raw shrimp and 15 minutes for cooked shrimp).
  2. Dice remaining vegetables: cucumber, avocado, tomato, onion, jalapeno, and cilantro.
  3. Once the shrimp are done marinating, stir in the diced vegetables and Clamato juice.
How to marinate shrimp for ceviche and how to assemble ceviche

Pro Tip: A speedy tip for making Ceviche is to dice everything up using a food chopper. You’ll get everything chopped up in less than 5 minutes. My husband literally puts everything he can on that chopper. He’s become super efficient with the many batches of ceviche we’ve enjoyed over the years.

Variations

There are so many ways to make this and different regions will make it differently (i.e Peruvian Ceviche versus Mexican Ceviche). The biggest differences are in the types of seafood used.

  • Fish Ceviche – instead of shrimp, you can try fresh white fish diced into small pieces. Some options include halibut, sea bass, or snapper. Scallops are also a popular option. Always use the freshest fish, keep it on ice in the refrigerator, and make ceviche the day you purchase it.
  • Raw Shrimp – If using raw shrimp, it should be super fresh and purchased from a trusted source (preferably shrimp labeled “wild caught”), and enjoy the ceviche the first day it is made.
  • Cooked Shrimp – I’ll be the first to admit that I love using cooked shrimp meat for ceviche. With a 15-minute marinating time, it’s a no-brainer for me. I also love that shrimp meat is often wild-caught and typically comes at a lower price tag than whole shrimp, plus there is zero peeling or deveining required. Sign me up!

Safety Tip: The USDA recommends cooking seafood thoroughly to minimize the risk of food born illness, especially for at-risk groups including pregnant women, children, older adults, and those with weakened immune systems. This is another reason we prefer using cooked shrimp.

Shrimp Ceviche in a mixing bowl with serving spoon

Is Ceviche Safe to Eat?

If you’re new to ceviche, you may be wondering – is ceviche still raw? Marinating shrimp in fresh lime juice essentially cooks the shrimp due to the high acidity of lime juice.

Use pre-cooked shrimp if you are uncomfortable with raw shrimp or want to save a ton of marinating time (and it will taste just as good). With small cooked shrimp salad meat, you don’t even have to dice it! In either case, rinse the shrimp and thoroughly squeeze or pat dry with paper towels to remove excess moisture so your cocktail isn’t watered down.

Make Ahead

Ceviche is best enjoyed the same day it is made since the cucumbers and tomatoes are vibrant and crisp, but leftovers do keep well.

Refrigerate leftovers right away. Refrigerate for up to 1 day if you used raw seafood and refrigerate for up to 2 days if you used cooked shrimp.

Shrimp ceviche on tostada with clamato juice and limes

Fresh Ceviche always induces major cravings – it’s just mouthwatering good. I hope this becomes a new favorite for you! Let me know if you make your salsa differently. Do you use cooked or fresh shrimp or another type of seafood?

More Shrimp Appetizers

Can you tell we love Shrimp Recipes by now? These are some of our top-rated Shrimp Appetizers that we make on repeat:

Ceviche Recipe

4.98 from 176 votes
Ceviche is loaded with shrimp, avocado, tomatoes, cucumber, and cilantro; all marinated in fresh lime juice. You can use raw shrimp or cooked shrimp meat for this Mexican shrimp cocktail. Using cooked shrimp meat cuts down the marinating time significantly which is why we prefer it. P.S. This also keeps really well in the refrigerator and you'll be happy if you have leftovers!
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Marinating Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients 

Servings: 8 people
  • 1 lb shrimp , (raw or cooked) peeled, deveined and diced
  • 1 cup lime juice, from 6 limes
  • 1 cucumber, peeled and diced
  • 2 avocados
  • 3 roma tomatoes, diced
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped
  • 1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
  • 1 cup Clamato juice, (use "picante" version for spicier salsa)

Options To Serve:

  • 16 Tostadas , (or tortilla chips)
  • Hot Sauce, (Tabasco or Cholula)

Instructions

  • Dice shrimp and place into a large glass (non-reactive) bowl. Squeeze 1 to 1 1/4 cups lime juice from 6 limes over shrimp. Stir to combine then cover and marinate in the refrigerator (marinate 1 1/2 to 2 hours for raw shrimp or until no longer translucent and marinate 15 minutes for cooked shrimp), stirring halfway through.
  • Chop the vegetables: cucumber, avocado, tomatoes, red onion, jalapeno and cilantro. A food chopper will make this process much faster.
  • When shrimp are done marinating, add vegetables to the bowl along with clamato juice and stir to combine. Serve with hot sauce if desired along with tortilla chips or over tostadas.

Notes

*Nutrition label only calculates the ceviche and not tostadas or tortilla chips for serving. 

Nutrition Per Serving

156kcal Calories11g Carbs13g Protein8g Fat1g Saturated Fat1g Polyunsaturated Fat5g Monounsaturated Fat0.003g Trans Fat91mg Cholesterol77mg Sodium630mg Potassium4g Fiber4g Sugar470IU Vitamin A27mg Vitamin C61mg Calcium1mg Iron
Nutrition Facts
Ceviche Recipe
Amount per Serving
Calories
156
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
8
g
12
%
Saturated Fat
 
1
g
6
%
Trans Fat
 
0.003
g
Polyunsaturated Fat
 
1
g
Monounsaturated Fat
 
5
g
Cholesterol
 
91
mg
30
%
Sodium
 
77
mg
3
%
Potassium
 
630
mg
18
%
Carbohydrates
 
11
g
4
%
Fiber
 
4
g
17
%
Sugar
 
4
g
4
%
Protein
 
13
g
26
%
Vitamin A
 
470
IU
9
%
Vitamin C
 
27
mg
33
%
Calcium
 
61
mg
6
%
Iron
 
1
mg
6
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: ceviche
Skill Level: Easy
Cost to Make: $$
Calories: 156
Natasha's Kitchen Cookbook
4.98 from 176 votes (117 ratings without comment)

Leave a Comment

Recipe Rating




Comments

  • Geneva
    April 11, 2022

    can I store this in the fridge? If so how long?

    THANKS FOR THIS AWESOME RECIPE!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 11, 2022

      Hi Geneva! You’re welcome! This recipe is best fresh!

      Reply

    • Lisa
      August 3, 2022

      I make a big batch and eat it for 3 days. I also add scallops. Omitting the Clamato. Better fresh but still really good the next day.

      Reply

  • Lisa
    October 18, 2021

    Is there a replacement for Clamato juice? I only see the one brand that has MSG in it. Recipe looks like it would be delicious!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      October 19, 2021

      Hi Lisa, if we don’t have it on hand, we have often left out the clamato juice and just used lime juice and served with hot sauce (Tabasco is our favorite for ceviche).

      Reply

  • Maryke
    August 18, 2021

    I want to make your ceviche but we don’t get clamato juice in our shops. What can I use instead?

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      August 18, 2021

      Hi Maryke, if we don’t have it on hand, we have often left out the clamato juice and just used lime juice and served with hot sauce (Tabasco is our favorite for ceviche).

      Reply

    • Krista
      August 13, 2022

      Tomato juice is just as good. I’ve done it this way several times.

      Reply

  • Gwen
    July 1, 2021

    I made this Ceviche but it turned out to have way too much liquid although the flavor was great. Should I have drained some of the lime juice?

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      July 1, 2021

      Hi Gwen, you can certainly drain some of the liquid.

      Reply

    • John
      December 19, 2021

      We made it last night according to recipe and it was very wet. We poured off at least half and it was still too wet.

      Reply

      • Linda Bender
        August 2, 2023

        If there is a lot of liquid pour it out and put it in a glass with some vodka. Excellent summer drink.

        Reply

    • Rich Ermolovich
      January 21, 2023

      Have made this several times. I always drain some of the liquid.

      Reply

  • Ari
    June 23, 2021

    heyy I recommend you to do a Peruvian ceviche recipe and I hope you could put Mexican ceviche as title because you can confuse 🙁

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      June 23, 2021

      Hi Ari, thanks for your suggestion.

      Reply

  • adri
    June 22, 2021

    Hm this isn’t ceviche, is more like a salad. Real ceviche is peruvian and doesn’t contain tomatoes or cucumber. The peruvian ceviche is fish, lemon, salt, pepper, cilantro, onion and you can put sweet potato and corn as an extra. Natasha, I hope you put a real ceviche recipe or edit the title as “mexican styled ceviche” bc this isn’t the original. PD: a guy in the comments put that in Peru we “cook” the fish 2 minutes and no… is a little more, you don’t want to get a bacteria lol! Maybe 15 minutes if you cut the fish in medium pieces

    Reply

  • Kelly
    June 15, 2021

    Do you have a go to recipe for mediterranean cold lentil salad?

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      June 15, 2021

      Hi Kelly, I don’t have a recipe for that yet but thanks for the idea and suggestion. I’ll try to add that to our list.

      Reply

  • Ana M
    June 14, 2021

    It came out quite acidic….I only used 5 limes!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      June 15, 2021

      Hi Ana, that is expected with ceviche. You need enough lime juice to cover the shrimp usually, but if you have larger very juicy limes, you can get away with using less.

      Reply

  • Nancy
    June 14, 2021

    This is almost identical to how I’ve been making Mexican ceviche for years except that I skip the Clamato and add hot sauce and a splash of Worcestershire to the lime juice. Every time I serve it at parties, it is gone in no time! For parties, I usually use the pre-cooked rock shrimp as it is more affordable and it seems to hold longer. I will also make a Peruvian style ceviche for just our immediate family but that one has Hominy and sweet potato in it and no tomato or cucumber. It is very different but still delicious.

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      June 14, 2021

      Thanks for sharing that with us, Nancy! Good to know that you also use a similar recipe to this one.

      Reply

  • Rhonda
    June 11, 2021

    The best ceviche is from Peru to me it’s not ceviche but turns to a salad when you add tomatoes and cucumbers and avocado

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      June 11, 2021

      Thank you so much for sharing that with me. I hope you give our recipe a try!

      Reply

  • Laurie
    June 3, 2021

    We don’t like avocado. Any suggestions for a substitute?

    Reply

    • Natasha
      June 3, 2021

      Hi Laurie, you could still make this without avocado and just add a little more of everything else.

      Reply

  • Elaine Barrow
    June 3, 2021

    What are the best corn tortillas to toast? This recipe sounds fabulous and I can’t wait to try it for guests next week!

    Reply

  • Duncan Edwards
    May 23, 2021

    As a keen follower of Natasha, I truly look forward to and enjoy her presentations, I’m happy and love them😛

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      May 23, 2021

      I’m glad you’re enjoying my recipes!

      Reply

  • D. Biddle
    May 17, 2021

    Is there anything else besides Clamato juice to put in the Seviche?

    Reply

    • Natasha
      May 17, 2021

      Hi, we have often left out the clamato juice and just used lime juice and served with hot sauce (Tabasco is our favorite for ceviche).

      Reply

  • Bernard Trenet
    May 11, 2021

    (non-metamixing bowl.

    great recipe!

    Editing not so much!

    Reply

  • Lenny
    May 5, 2021

    This is a great recipe! I love ceviche made with Argentinan shrimp and scallops so I modified it a tad. Rather than adding avocado to the veggie mix, I added it on top of the ceviche and an air fried tostada with a smear of mayo. Yum yum for Cinco de Mayo!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      May 5, 2021

      Thank you so much for sharing that with me.

      Reply

  • Richie
    April 20, 2021

    Thank you for your recipes,
    I made the shrimp ceviche, it was delicious, my neighbors couldn’t enough, it was Fantastic!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 20, 2021

      Isn’t it the best! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe, Richie!

      Reply

  • Janet Petersen
    April 16, 2021

    We are having this tonight. Can’t wait to get the family’s review. We have a restaurant in town with circus on the menu. We hope it is that good!

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      April 16, 2021

      I hope you love this recipe, Janet!

      Reply

  • Dan Miller
    March 20, 2021

    It should be noted that the lime juice should be drained prior to mixing with the veggies. But don’t rinse the shrimp.

    Reply

    • Kaylee
      May 1, 2021

      For the authentic mexican way of making ceviche you actually don’t empty out the lime juice.

      Reply

  • Paulina Isaksson
    March 6, 2021

    Omg! Love this recipe 🙂

    Reply

    • Natashas Kitchen
      March 6, 2021

      That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review!

      Reply

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