Vuelve a la Vida (“Come Back to Life” Seafood Cocktail)

Name: Vuelve a la Vida (Mexican Seafood Cocktail)
Yield: Serves 6 to 8 generously as an appetizer, 4 to 6 as a light main course
Ingredients: 1 pound firm, mild white fish fillets, such as flounder, snapper, or sea bass, cut into 1⁄2-inch dice; 2 cups freshly squeezed lime juice (from 12 to 14 limes); 6 Tbsp. olive oil; 2 garlic cloves, peeled; 2 dried chiles de árbol; Kosher salt; 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined; 2 tomatoes, finely chopped; 1 to 2 jalapeños, finely chopped; 2 pickled jalapeños, finely chopped, or to taste; 2⁄3 cup finely chopped white onion; 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves and upper stems; 1⁄3 cup pimiento-stuffed green olives; 1⁄4 cup chopped drained capers; 1 1⁄2 cups ketchup; 1 1⁄2 tsp. dried oregano; 1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage; 1⁄4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, or to taste; 1 to 2 ripe avocados, halved, pitted, and sliced or diced; Corn tostadas, tortilla chips, or saltine crackers for serving

By Pati Jinich

February 3, 2023

Seafood cocktail in a large bowl with diced avocado.

Photo by Angie Mosier

One of Mexico’s most famous pick-me-ups after a long night out, this very saucy, almost soupy, mixed seafood cocktail gets its name because it is tossed with a bracing mix of tart, pungent, and spicy ingredients. In restaurants all along the Gulf and Pacific Coasts, vuelve a la vida is usually made to order. Many people will ask for the dish con todo, with every possible seafood in the kitchen. Others will request their favorite mix.

The cocktails play around with different chile concoctions, including fresh and pickled, and various seasonings and hot sauces. It’s essential that the fish be very fresh, not thawed from frozen, because it’s just cold-cooked in a lime juice marinade, as in a traditional Mexican ceviche.

Here’s my favorite take on the classic Mexican seafood cocktail. The seafood here is a combination of lime-marinated fish, cooked shrimp, and crabmeat. Olive oil seasoned with garlic and chile de árbol gives the saucy mix added depth and a hefty punch.

This recipe was excerpted from 'Pati Jinich Treasures Of The Mexican Table' by Pati Jinich. Buy the full book on Amazon and get a full meal plan from Pati Jinich here.

Cook's note:

You can play around with the fish (marinate any fresh fish in lime juice as instructed) and seafood combinations, substituting or adding other varieties of shellfish, such as raw oysters and/or clams, raw conch, and/or raw scallops, as well as cooked lobster, squid, and/or octopus, to equal 3 pounds total.

Recipe information

Yield
Serves 6 to 8 generously as an appetizer, 4 to 6 as a light main course

Ingredients

1 pound firm, mild white fish fillets, such as flounder, snapper, or sea bass, cut into 1⁄2-inch dice

2 cups freshly squeezed lime juice (from 12 to 14 limes)

6 Tbsp. olive oil

2 garlic cloves, peeled

2 dried chiles de árbol

Kosher salt

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 tomatoes, finely chopped

1 to 2 jalapeños, finely chopped

2 pickled jalapeños, finely chopped, or to taste

2⁄3 cup finely chopped white onion

1⁄2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves and upper stems

1⁄3 cup pimiento-stuffed green olives

1⁄4 cup chopped drained capers

1 1⁄2 cups ketchup

1 1⁄2 tsp. dried oregano

1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage

1⁄4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

1 to 2 ripe avocados, halved, pitted, and sliced or diced

Corn tostadas, tortilla chips, or saltine crackers for serving

Preparation

Step 1
Place the diced fish in a bowl, add the lime juice, and gently mix. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate for at least an hour, and for up to 12 hours, in the refrigerator.
Step 2
Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Add the garlic cloves and chile de árbol and cook until the garlic is golden, 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally; take care not to burn the garlic and chiles. Turn off the heat and allow the oil to cool, then remove and discard the garlic cloves and chiles.
Step 3
Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, salt generously, and add the shrimp. Cook for 1 minute, or just until pink. Immediately drain the shrimp and transfer to a bowl. Let cool. In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, fresh and pickled jalapeños, onion, cilantro, olives, capers, ketchup, and oregano and mix well. Stir in the seasoned olive oil.
Step 4
Drain the fish, reserving the marinade, and add the fish, shrimp, and crabmeat to the bowl, along with 11⁄2 cups of the marinade from the fish. Gently mix together, then season with 2 teaspoons salt and the black pepper. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper.
Step 5
Serve in small bowls or martini or other stemmed glasses, topped with the avocado and with tostadas, chips, or crackers on the side.

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Excerpted from Pati Jinich Treasures Of The Mexican Table © 2021 by Pati Jinich. Photography © 2021 by Angie Mosier. Reproduced by permission of Harvest, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved. Buy the full book from Amazon or HarperCollins.