Ceviche reminds me of hot beach days in Mexico. If you don’t eat seafood, worry not, you can still enjoy the refreshing taste of ceviche. I’d heard about vegan versions using hearts of palm for a long time, but was wary of a dish that might visually resemble the original but fall short on flavor. Then the solution presented itself: kelp!

Kelp, or the seaweed known as kombu in Japanese and used to make the stock known as dashi, also comes in powdered or granular form, and it adds the taste of the sea that you need to convince your tastebuds that those hearts of palm are fish, or scallops. I used kelp powder from Burlap and Barrel and highly recommend it. Kelp and other sea vegetables is also a great plantbased source of iodine, crucial for thyroid health.

If you’ve used kelp powder in other recipes, please share the links in the comments!

Vegan Ceviche

Makes: 3 cups

1 can hearts of palm, rinsed and drained

1 Roma tomato

1/4 large red onion

1/4 cup cilantro

Juice of 2-3 limes

1 tsp kelp powder (optional but strongly recommended)

1 small avocado, diced into 1/4 inch pieces

Salt to taste

For serving: tortilla chips, tostadas or Saltines (as they do in Mexico)

Method

Dice hearts of palm into 1/2 inch pieces, and all other ingredients into 1/4 inch pieces. Place in a small mixing bowl.

Add lime juice and sprinkle with kelp powder, stir to combine. Cover and allow to marinate for at least two hours.

Stir in diced avocado, adjust salt to taste (you might not need any).

Serve with tortilla chips, tostadas or saltines.