Is ceviche as good as raw?

[eveheart]

I've been thinking about how to word this question, but it might take a little explanation to get across exactly what I am asking.

My reasoning says that fish marinated to the point of being fully denatured is in-between heat-cooked (minimally digestible) and raw/unmarinated (highly digestible). So, what I want to know is: how far "down the scale" would fully denatured ceviche be?

My goal in eating RPD is optimum health. Even though I think ceviche is yummy, I'd give it up in a heartbeat if I knew that it was not all that great for me.

[goodsamaritan]

In my personal experience ceviche degrades the meat.  But its good for travel.  Raw is better.

[laterade]

If I make ceviche for myself (not common), I eat it immediately. If I take it to someone I will put the toppings in another jar until ready. I like it best without prolonged marination.

[CitrusHigh]

I don't know about health implications of ceviche vs. true raw, but I just made Spontaneous Chicken Ceviche  for the first time with some things I had laying around and I've got to say, it was better than I even imagined. I love ceviche, I've had all sorts, but never chicken. Today I happened to have some chicken in the house and picked up a few other ingredients like limes and when I got home I squeezed a few limes over some chopped chicken, then while that was soaking, I diced yellow onion, turnip and cilantro and then mixed those in. The chicken ate all the lime juice in about 15 minutes time and then I added quite a bit of salt, then spread the whole mix on to warmed tortilla shells and it was infreakingcredible. I can only imagine how delicious this would be with some forethought and some of the other typical ceviche ingredients like tomato, etc. Anyway, I highly recommendo!

[eveheart]

I like the idea of quick marinade, for times when I want the ceviche experience. I think I'll go with that once in a while from now on.

As a food fermenter, my ceviche gets mixed in with my signature fermented pico de gallo salsa and some avocado. I could probably do without the lime-juice marinade if I'm the only one eating it.

[HIT_it_RAW]

The enzymes in meat start digesting the meat very fast in an acidic enviremont. This predigestion changes the appearance of the meat. So i'd say it would be very easy to digest.

[TylerDurden]

I do not find marinated, raw foods to be ideal, based on my own experience.

[mmspam31]

I wish there was a good evidence based answer. Any chemists able to analyze enzyme and nutrient composition after marination over time?

A good practical answer might be you are saving your stomach a little work since the stomach acid would be breaking the food down anyway. I did a little quick googling and it seems the acidity of lemon and lime is near that of the stomach acid. So maybe marination in lemon/lime is better than raw (wild idea, I know)?

[aLptHW4k4y]

I think some nutrients (but not much) may leach into the marinade, otherwise I don't think it should be much different from raw food regarding health. It will surely go through the stomach faster.

The enzymes in meat start digesting the meat very fast in an acidic enviremont. This predigestion changes the appearance of the meat. So i'd say it would be very easy to digest.

What enzymes are these? I don't think there should be any proteolytic enzymes in meat, except maybe in the pancreas (unlikely even there)?

[mmspam31]

I would think there'd be enzymes in nearly all living cells, including muscle cells and the other connective tissue present in meat (marbled fat, other juices and organic matter present). I haven't been able to find a solid answer though, this is just my common sense guess. I base this guess off the definition of what an enzyme does and the fact that there has to be some sort of chemical reactions in muscle tissue in order to cause a contraction or rebuild muscle tissue:

http://science.howstuffworks.com/dictionary/chemistry-terms/enzymes-info.htm
"Enzymes, complex proteins produced by all living things. They play an important role in nearly all the chemical reactions that take place in organisms by acting as catalysts. (Catalysts are chemical substances that change the rate of a chemical reaction without themselves being changed by the reaction.) Most often, enzymes allow reactions to begin sooner than they would in their absence, thereby speeding up metabolic processes."

As to the mention of proteolytic enzymes, I know still less, but for those who might be trying too understand too here's a link to the definition or my abbreviated interpretation:
An enzyme that helps break down proteins into smaller components.
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/479818/proteolytic-enzyme

Based on the definition it seems unlikely for there to be much of this type of enzyme in the muscle tissue itself since it would cause the muscle to break down, but it may be there in a latent state or small amount in order to strip away damaged or old tissue.