Name: Seafood Salad in Avocado Halves (Ensalada de Mariscos “Rafapar”)
Yield: Makes 8 large servings if served in avocado halves (more if served in a bowl)
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 10 black peppercorns; 3 bay leaves; 4 ounces Caribbean conch steak or scungilli (North Atlantic whelk); 2 garlic cloves, unpeeled; 1 small white onion, unpeeled; 1 pound octopus (cleaned weight); 4 ripe Mexican-type avocados (such as Hass or Fuerte); ¼ cup mayonnaise, or to taste (optional); Juice of 2 limes; ¼ cup olive oil; 2 medium-sized ripe globe tomatoes or 2 large ripe plum tomatoes, peeled and seeded; 1 fresh bulb onion or 1 medium-small red onion; 10–12 cilantro sprigs; 4 ounces lump crabmeat, picked over to remove any bits of shell or cartilage; 8 large or medium shrimp (sold as 12–16 count or 16–20 count), in the shell; 1 large fresh thyme sprig or ½ teaspoon crumbled dried thyme; 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

Preparation info

Makes
8
large servings if served in avocado halves (more if served in a bowl)

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Zarela's Veracruz

By Zarela Martínez

Published 2001

About

This dish is the creation and namesake of rafael Pardiño, at Restaurant Riviera Pardiños in Boca del Río. It is always served there in avocado halves. But if you want to combine the avocado flesh with the rest of the salad, there are two possibilities. Scoop out the flesh, chop it, and mix it with the rest of the salad ingredients, then fill the avocado shells with the mixture, or put it in a serving bowl or on individual plates (presented this way, the salad could serve up to 9 or 10). In