[Photograph: Brys Stephens]
At first, I wasn't really sure what to do with the sweet potato slices that accompany Brys Stephens's Peruvian-style ceviche in his cookbook, The New Southern Table. They didn't strike me as particularly compatible with the gently pickled fish. Then I grabbed a slice with my hand, pretending it was a tortilla chip. Genius. The sweet starchiness of the boiled potatoes offered much more of a blank canvas for dipping than salty chips, balancing the fire of the chilies and tanginess of the lime juice.
Why I picked this recipe: I was too curious about how the sweet potatoes would work in this dish to pass it up.
What worked: I hadn't made ceviche using this method before, but you can consider me a convert. I liked that the fish in the final dish didn't have to sit in the citrus at all before serving; it stayed silky and soft instead of turning white and chewy in the juice.
What didn't: No problems at all.
Suggested tweaks: You could use any flaky white fish in place of the flounder. My fish market had sole, so I used that. Cod would also work well.
As always with our Cook the Book feature, we have five (5) copies of The New Southern Table to give away this week.