Cuban-Peruvian fusion recipe

Peruvian Leche de Tigre with Passion Fruit and Cuban Tostones

Name: Peruvian Leche de Tigre with Passion Fruit and Cuban Tostones
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 120 g cleaned fillet of corvina or other white saltwater fish suitable for raw consumption, very cold, skinless and boneless; 100 ml freshly squeezed lime or green lemon juice, seed-free; 90 ml mild fish broth, strained and chilled, without excess salt; 60 ml pure fresh passion fruit juice, strained, seedless and unsweetened; 2 tablespoons passion fruit pulp pushed through a fine sieve, seedless; 35 g red onion; 20 g celery; ½ small garlic clove; 5 g fresh ginger; 5-6 sprigs cilantro, with the tender stems; ½ Peruvian ají limo, seeded, to taste; optionally a little ají cachucha for aroma; Salt to taste; Ice cubes to keep the utensils cold (remove it if you use it in the mixture so it does not water it down); 2 green plantains, peeled and cut into thick rounds; Vegetable oil for frying, as needed; Salt to taste; Optional: finely chopped cilantro and a few drops of strained, seedless passion fruit juice for finishing

Citrusy, creamy Peruvian leche de tigre made with seedless passion fruit, served ice cold with crispy Cuban tostones for dipping.

CiberCubaNovember 11, 2026

AI-generated image.CiberCuba

Preparation25 min
Cooking15 min
Total time40 min
Servings4 starter servings
DifficultyMedium

Leche de tigre is that citrusy, salty, spicy broth that in Peru is left at the bottom of the ceviche and is also drunk on its own, as a starter or a pick-me-up. Here we serve it as the star, with a touch of passion fruit that adds a tropical aroma and a lovely pale yellow color.

For dipping, nothing beats Cuban tostones made from green plantain, golden and crispy. It is a Cuban-Peruvian fusion: the freshness of the Pacific and the fried food of the Cuban table on the same plate.

Method

Start with the fish broth already prepared, strained and completely cold, and the fish thawed in the refrigerator. Confirm with the supplier that the fish has received a freezing treatment against parasites for raw consumption. Keep the ingredients refrigerated and avoid cross-contamination. Pre-chill the utensils with ice, remove it and drain the water before starting, so you do not dilute the mixture.
Open the passion fruits, separate the pulp and carefully pass it through a fine sieve without crushing the black seeds. Obtain 60 ml of juice and 2 tablespoons of seedless pulp separately. Do not add seeds to the recipe or the garnish.
AI-generated image.CiberCuba
Put the cold fish in pieces, the lime juice, the cold broth, the red onion, the celery, the garlic, the ginger, the cilantro and the ají limo in the blender. Also add the ají cachucha if using. Blend briefly until you have a uniform, opaque liquid, without letting the mixture warm up.
AI-generated image.CiberCuba
Pass the mixture through a fine sieve to remove fibers and solids, without heating it, and adjust the salt.
AI-generated image.CiberCuba
Stir the 60 ml of passion fruit juice and the 2 tablespoons of seedless pulp into the strained leche de tigre and mix gently. Taste: the acidity of the lime and passion fruit should balance without sugar, with a citrusy, briny, fresh flavor and moderate heat. Refrigerate immediately.
AI-generated image.CiberCuba
Cut the peeled green plantains into rounds 2-3 cm thick. Fry them at 160-170 °C for about 5-7 minutes, until tender. Remove them, flatten them with the tostonera to about 1 cm thick and fry them again at 180 °C for 2-3 minutes, until golden and crispy. Work in batches, without crowding. Drain them and season with salt.
AI-generated image.CiberCuba
Serve the leche de tigre in 4 very cold small bowls or glasses: it should look pale yellow and creamy, with no seeds or pieces of fish. Sprinkle a little cilantro if you like and put the hot tostones on the side of the plate, to dip them just as you eat.

Tips and variations

Leche de tigre contains no milk or dairy; its slightly creamy look comes from blending and straining the fish. It is not a sweet drink or a cocktail.

Advance preparation and timing: the 40 minutes assume the fish is already thawed in the refrigerator and the broth is prepared, strained and completely cold. They do not include the preventive freezing, the thawing, or making and chilling the broth.

Safety: use fish from a reliable supplier intended for raw consumption, with freezing treatment against parasites confirmed by the supplier. Lime and passion fruit do not make raw fish safe: proper freezing controls parasites, but it does not eliminate all harmful microorganisms. Keep the fish and the leche de tigre at 4 °C or below and avoid cross-contamination.

Cooked alternative: pregnant women, children, older adults and immunocompromised people should avoid the raw version. For an alternative, cook the fish completely until it reaches 63 °C at the center, cool it quickly and use it cold; the result will differ from the traditional one.

Serve it freshly made and very cold; discard any leftovers of the raw preparation. Serve the tostones hot and on the side to keep them crispy.

Diets: check that the broth contains no gluten or dairy in order to keep those labels.

Safety references: FDA: selecting and serving fresh and frozen seafood safely and AESAN: anisakis prevention.