It may sound a bit contrived, but we do seem to have something about traveling to the end of the road. If there is a road that ends in a sunset, or a sunrise, we seem to find ourselves there. The beaches of Kauai or the East End of Long Island call to us almost every summer (that they are both about the same distance from Norcal is just a coincidence). Other than a clean horizon, these two places don’t have a lot in common….expect maybe for surf (another um….coincidence) and incredibly fresh fish.
And while we love the striped bass of Long Island (do we ever), the fresh ahi, also known as yellowfin tuna, of Kauai is our favorite treat. But, to be fair, there is great ahi and bluefin tuna in Long Island and our experience with this recipe started in East Hampton. Our friend Chad makes something between a tuna tartare and a Hawaiian poke’ every summer in Long Island, and now that recipe makes the trip to Kauai along with us.
We call this dish a tartar in respect for Chad, but it is pretty close to poke’, the Hawaiian staple of chopped raw fish, seaweed, salt, soy sauce, sesame oil and roasted nuts. Chad’s version omits the seaweed (we serve on nori) and adds finely diced sweet onion or shallot and a big pinch of lime zest that adds a bright citrus note that makes the dish truly sing. And depending on what’s available, some hot chili paste, Sriracha or wasabi add a nice kick.
This is an easy recipe to adjust as you make it, so just start with small amounts of the seasonings and tune / taste as you go. The key here is the ahi. Firstly, the ahi must be very fresh. It is best to make this dish in the place the fish was caught, or to get a piece of sashimi-grade ahi from a fish monger you trust. Once you have the ahi, you need to get it very cold (firming it up in the freezer for an hour is OK) and cut into small cubes of 1/2 to 1/4 inch. This takes a sharp knife, time and patience, but your efforts will be rewarded. You will also need to remove any white sinew you get while slicing, it is nearly inedible and will ruin the texture of the tartare. Then just take your chopped ahi, mix in the other ingredients and tune for your tastes. Fun.
As for serving the tartare, you have a few options. The easiest / fastest way is just to serve it with some crackers (Triscuits and rice crackers both work very well). But we prefer a trifecta of nori squares, quick pickled cucumber slices and potato chips. The tartare will keep a few days in the fridge, so serving it over rice as a main course is also a very tasty option. Usually, however, leftovers are not an issue.
Notes Before You Start:
- You can use other sashimi-grade tuna like bigeye or bluefin as a substitute for the ahi. Very fresh sushi-grade salmon also works very well.
- If you don’t have macadamia nuts, roasted peanuts are a decent substitute.
- Black or red Hawaiian sea salt makes for attractive presentation.
What You Get: One of the best fish dishes you can find. Healthy, too.
What You Need: A very sharp knife.
How Long? About 20-30 minutes. It all depends on your knife skills.
Ingredients:
(Serves 8-10 as a starter or side)
- 1 lb. fresh ahi tuna, cut into 1/4 – 1/2 inch dice
- 1 tablespoon macadamia nuts, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons sweet onion, finely minced
- 2 tablespoons (plus extra for garnish) green onion, finely chopped
- Zest of one lime
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce (or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha or Sambal Olek (or to taste)
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or to taste), plus extra for garnish
- Nori, for serving
- Cucumber quick pickles, for serving
- Potato chips, for serving
Assemble:
- Place the chopped tuna, nuts, onion and lime zest in a medium bowl. Add most of the sesame oil, soy sauce, hot sauce and salt. Mix and taste. Add more seasoning, as needed.
- Serve on nori squares, cucumber slices and/or potato chips. garnish with sliced green onion or seas salt, if you like. Serve.
Related articles
- Easy Ahi Poke Recipe (lindawagner.net)
- Kiki’s Kitchen: Ahi Poke Crispy Tacos w/ Spicy Slaw (thefashioncamp.com)
- More Ahi (thestarvingartistfood.com)
- Ahi tuna and avocado timbale (famandfri.wordpress.com)
- Barry Wine’s Raw Ahi Tuna Pizza (justinmoorescott.com)
Now I am hungry! I love tartar everything and this looks like a nice spin on the traditional “tartar”. I might just to try it!
Thanks- it is a very tasty dish and a fun way to experiment.
Whenever we serve this, our guests love it.
Just love …. fish tartars – quite a few years since I had a tuna tartar. Great dish. Have served salmon tartar – like the idea of peanuts in the mixture .. very exciting. Sambal Olek is a great product. So this I just have to bookmark. Time to get back in the kitchen and try out others recipes .. a while ago now.
Thanks Wivi…hope you try it (good w/ ahi and salmon, even octopus, if feeling adventuresome).
And FYI- we are working on your cocktail- we haven’t forgotten!
Stewart, that must be some cocktail … *laughing
No rush – I’m sure it’s worth waiting for.
Octopus tartar – that is very adventures!!!
Mamma mia che belle e sicuramente buone!
Complimenti!
Gabriella
Thanks!
Looks very very nice, I like the presentations very much as well. Being a raw fish lover (tuna, salmon, swordfish etc, you name it) I can only like this post
Thanks- hope you try it out. It does work just as well w/ salmon…
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Eye candy … sheer eye candy … and I bet it tasted even better than it looked!
It did…sigh… 😉
Thx!
Reblogged this on One Black T-Shirt.
I am always looking for new canape ideas, and this looks amazing. I love the idea of serving the tartare on cucumber slices – so healthy and fresh!
Thanks- it is a healthy dish, but still a treat…
I love that you gave a few different serving ideas. I love tuna tartare and your recipe looks absolutely divine.
daisy
Thanks Daisy- most appreciated. I bet you could have some fun w/ the recipe…
Beautiful dish, thanks for sharing!
This looks so tasty! Tuna tartar is one of my favorite foods of all time so I am saving this recipe for when I feel like treating myself! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Hope you try it and enjoy it!
Your tartare looks perfect. I can’t wait to try this recipe.
Love this, and your photos are beautiful. Especially the first one.
Thanks!
I love your creative approach to “crackers” 🙂
Thanks- makes it a bit more fun..
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