Tuna Tartare with Ginger and Sesame
My weeknight Asian-style tuna and avocado tartare flavoured with ginger, lime, sesame and soy is served with crispy fat-free rice paper crispies. This easy tuna tartare recipe is fresh and sophisticated; making it the perfect appetizer for entertaining.
Is Tuna Tartare raw?
In a word, yes but it cures slightly in the acid of the lime juice. Because the dish is fresh, you need to use fresh sushi-grade fresh either albacore or ahi tuna work well for this tuna tartare recipe. You can buy sushi-grade tuna in most fish mongers and Japanese supermarkets.
I made this tuna tartare so often while living in Asia, but I’m always going to have my own Western take on dishes so I never claim to be authentic anything. Tuna tartare, like a Mexican tuna tostada, needs to be accompanied by something crispy. I. try to avoid deep-fry so I love to serve this tuna tartare with my low-fat rice paper crisps made in the oven. You will love this quick and simple hack.
What is Tuna Tartare?
Tartare is a dish of tenderised raw meat of fish favoured with condiments. The classic being beef steak tartare but fish version such as tuna tartare and salmon tartare are also very popular, especially in the summer months in Europe.
Tuna Tartare Origins
Culinary legend has it that tuna tartare was invented by a Japanese chef working in a French restaurant in Los Angeles in the eighties. He wanted an alternative to beef steak tartare and replaced it with meaty tuna. However, it is more likely that tuna tartare emerged organically as versions of it exist in several cultures.
Is tuna tartare different to poke and ceviche?
For example, fish tartare seasoned with citrus and olive oil has been eaten for many years in the South of France and the Mediterranean region. On the other side of the world, Hawaii fish poke was influenced by traditional Polynesian tradition of marinating raw fish in coconut water later combined flavours like soy sauce brought by Japanese immigrants. Peruvian ceviche, where raw fish is cured in a mixture of lime juice, chilli, onion and herbs was also heavily influenced by Japanese immigrants.
People in France eat a lot of both meat and fish tartare but the origins of the word tartare are actually from what is now the Crimea, where legend has it the Tartar people or les Tartares would soften raw meat under their saddles as they rode their horses across Central Europe.
This easy tuna tartare recipe means you will never need to go to a restaurant to get your tuna tartare fix again.
Ingredients
Serves 2
200g sashimi-grade tuna, very finely chopped
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
3 drops of sesame oil
Thumb of ginger, finely grated (I use a microplane)
Small bunch of chives, finely chopped
Sesame seeds, to garnish
1 avocado
A lime to squeeze
4 rice paper sheets
Method
How to make rice paper crisps
Preheat the oven to 250C or as hot as it will go.
Using a tongs, carefully place the rice paper in the oven and watch it bubble and crisp up. This will happen within seconds so you need to stay close
Remove the rice paper crisp immediately before it goes brown. It may take you a few practice runs to get the hang of it.
How to make tuna tartare
Combine the soy sauce, lime juice, sesame oil and ginger to make the tartare seasoning sauce.
Remove the flesh from the avocado and cube. Immediately toss in lime juice to prevent it from browning. Season with salt.
Mix the finely chopped tuna with the sauce, chives and sesame seeds and leave to sit for 5-10 minutes in a cold fridge.
How to serve tuna tartare
Use a pastry ring to assemble individual tuna tartare servings. If you do not have a pastry ring you can make one easily. Cut a sheet of parchment baking paper and fold it back on itself three or four times so that it is stiff. Shape into a ring and then secure with some sticky tape.
Place the ring directly on the plate, fill halfway with a layer of the chopped avocado and gently then press down.
Top with a layer of the tuna tartare mix, press gently (but don’t squish the tartare). Carefully remove the ring.
Serve immediately, topped with toasted sesame seeds and chives and accompanied by the rice cracker crispies.
