The off-menu Key West shrimp ceviche at Ted’s is a clever interpretation of the raw classic.
Ted’s Executive Chef Nicolas Caicedo preparing his Key West shrimp ceviche (which uses house-made ketchup and mayo, along with the traditional leche de tigre).
“Everyone in Miami does ceviche,” says Executive Chef Nicolas Caicedo. The 27-year-old chef makes a valid point: Fresh seafood tossed in cilantro and lime is a staple on menus all over town—except at Ted’s, the Stephen Starr (Makoto, Verde) concept on the seventh floor of the Bacardi Building on the campus of National YoungArts Foundation, which has fostered talent the likes of Adrian Grenier and Nicki Minaj. Beside chef Caicedo’s globally inspired tapas menu, Ted’s proffers live entertainment (courtesy of YoungArts alumni).
Left-of-center ingredients
Only those in the know would order Caicedo’s innovative (and thus far off-menu) take on the Miami staple. “Everyone uses white fish for ceviche. We wanted to be different,” says Caicedo, who earned his culinary stripes working alongside Spain’s highest-Michelin-starred toque, Martín Berasategui (Bodegón Alejandro, Restaurante Martín Berasategui, Lasarte). He spoons a rather unusual ingredient—house-made ketchup—into a bowl of already salted and marinating crustaceans. “I don’t want it to be the typical Miami ceviche,” he says of the dish.
But ketchup isn’t the only atypical element: “I also throw in a tiny bit of mayo.” That’s in addition to his tiger’s milk. The evocatively named Peruvian citrus-laden marinade, piquant with ginger, is what “cooks” the protein. “If the pieces aren’t even, some are going to cook faster.”
Homemade plantain chips provide a crunchy, salty counterpoint to the finished ceviche.
It’s all in the timing
For ceviche, timing isn’t just crucial; it’s everything. “We make it à la minute because we don’t want to risk the shrimp overcooking.” A five-minute soak in his marinade will get it to the right point of citrus-cooked perfection. “Instead of blanching for a minute and cooking it, I want to cure it with the lime juice in the tiger’s milk, but I don’t want it to have too much acid.”
Deft balance
Caicedo garnishes the dish with micro-cilantro from R. Pontano Produce in Lake Worth and homemade plantain chips, which provide a crunchy, salty sidekick to the sweet and citrusy tiger’s milk. “That sweetness comes from the ketchup and mayo; it balances all the flavors and pulls them together,” he says cracking a half smile, before asking, “Good? This batch is going to Stephen Starr’s corporate chef so he can decide if we want to add it to the menu permanently or keep it as a special.” Off menu or not, it’s a dish that’s special in every way. 2100 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, 786-618-3210