The Muelle (Dock) and Making Ceviche

In 1524, 32 years after Columbus’ trip, Hernán Cortés' nephew Spaniard Francisco Cortés de Buena Ventura arrived in the Chacala bay. A long time before that, it was inhabitated by the Tecoxquin (sometimes referred to as the Throat cutters) from approximately 2000 to 2300 BC. They left petroglyphs in nearby places.

The indigenous who lived here when Cortés came, were mainly fishermen and farmers . They also traded salt and cotton and coaco.

Chacala was a small commercial port in the 1800s (coffee) but didn’t become a big port like San Blas or Puerto Vallarta did. The old port is still used by local fisherman who go out early in the morning to catch shrimp and all sorts of other fish.

The muelle is at the end of the street and so we went down in the morning to see what was being brought in. The shrimp boats had come in because we had heard the vendors over loud speakers announcing that we could buy shrimp off the truck going around town.

The whole area is very picturesque with boats bobbing in the water, pelicans and other seabirds flying from one perch to another and fisherman doing their thing.

A big table is set up in the shade where fishermen can clean their catch. They throw the carcasses back into the water for the other fish and the pelicans to eat. I asked what kind of fish they were cleaning and was told Toro (Bullfish) and Truche del Arrife (Reef Trout). I asked what kind of fish is good for making ceviche and was told that a fish called Cochito Bota (Triggerfish) was the one to use.

They didn’t have a fresh fish but they did have a kilogram frozen package. It was the perfect size so we bought it, thawed it in cold water and made a delicious ceviche.

Basic Ceviche Recipe

1 pound whitefish, cut into bite-size pieces
6-8 squeezed limes
Couple of tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
1/3 cup diced green or red bell pepper (optional)
chopped onion
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped, or to taste
4 cloves garlic, minced
salt and ground black pepper to taste
Directions
Place fish into a flat dish; cover with lime juice. Chill fish in refrigerator until tender and opaque, at least 3 hours. Drain lime juice.
Mix tomato, cilantro, green bell pepper, onion, jalapeno pepper, garlic, salt, and pepper in a bowl; add fish and stir. Chill in refrigerator until flavors blend, about 1 hour.Read more