My red tuna tartare recipe

There is no unique recipe for a tuna tartare, it admits many variations, according to taste and availability. That is why it’s important to know first of all what are the ingredients and spices that go well with tuna, the star of this dish.

Note: Additionally we will use a cooking ring or alternatively, a similarly shaped container.

The tartare is a dish usually served as a starter, based on raw meat or fish, seasoned with sauces and spices. It is served cold and can be accompanied by other ingredients. Among the variants with fish, the salmon tartare and especially the tuna one are probably the most appreciated.

Preparation:

Start by cutting the tuna. Depending on taste, it can be cubed to the size of a bite, or almost very finely minced (this also depends on your skills with the knife).

It can be seasoned simply with a little salt, although I like to do it with soy sauce and a little lime juice. Reserve and continue cutting the avocado and chopping onion and chili separately.

Presentation:

Brush the inside of the ring with oil. Place it in the center of a plate and assemble successive layers with the ingredients, leaving the tuna on top. Then remove the ring carefully and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top. It’s also possible to decorate for example with some sprouts or coriander leaves.

Tips and tricks:

1. If you don’t have a ring, it’s possible use a ramekin or container of a similar shape. It is important to brush it with oil beforehand, to prevent the ingredients from sticking.
2. It’s important to use a very sharp knife without teeth to cut the fish, otherwise the fillet will be destroyed instead of cut.
3. Do not use a juicer for the limes, always do it by hand and without pressing excessively. Otherwise, we would extract the juices close to the peel, which are too bitter.
4. It’s advisable to wear gloves or rub your hands with olive oil before handling the chili. In this way we protect ourselves from capsaicin, the spicy substance in peppers that can be highly irritating for the skin.
5. Soy sauce dyes the fish. Season only with salt and pepper if you prefer to keep the original color of the tuna for the presentation.
6. Ideally, for security reasons, any fish that is going to be consumed without cooking should be previously frozen for at least 5 days at -20°. This is an important prophylactic step to prevent eventual infections by anisakis, a parasite that can sometimes be found in sea fish.
7. See also the recipe for Peruvian ceviche, a different dish but which, being based on raw fish, shares many basic concepts.