Spicy Tuna Tartare
It's not Japanese but Japanese-American having been invented by a Japanese chef in California in the 1980s. Since then, so many variations of the dish have come out, some more exciting than others.In our spicy tuna tartare recipe, tempura scraps were tossed in for textural contrast. After all, a light crunch is highly irresistible.
Ingredients
- 200 grams sushi-grade tuna chilled (see notes after the recipe)
- ½ cup tempura scraps available in Japanese groceries
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons finely sliced scallions
Spicy sauce
- 2 tablespoons Japanese mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons chili sauce (Sriracha was used here)
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sesame seed oil
Instructions
- Pat the tuna dry with a kitchen towel.
- Cut the tuna into half-inch cubes.
- Toss the tuna cubes with the tempura scraps, sesame seeds and scallions.
- Stir together all the ingredients for the sauce.
- Pour the sauce over the tuna mixture and toss lightly until evenly distributed.
- Serve your spicy tuna tartare at once.
Notes
There’s tuna and there’s sushi-grade tuna. The latter is more expensive because it is cut from a portion of the fish with the least ligaments. Get the freshest and best quality tuna. This is a raw fish dish and you do not want to take the risk of food poisoning commonly associated with not-too-fresh seafood.
It is easier to slice chilled (not frozen tuna) because it is firm and, hence, the less chances of the fish flesh falling apart.
