Difficulty 2/5
This recipe looks astounding and yet it’s not as complicated as it looks. A tataki (whether it’s fish or beef) is a meat that’s cooked only around the outside, leaving the center nice and raw. This sauce is also nice as it’s sweet and a bit tangy, so it goes amazing with the tuna and even better when dipped in soy sauce before the final bite. It’s meant to be an appetizer, but to be honest I could eat the whole thing as a main. I also chopped some avocado and lime segments to put on top so vary the flavours and textures as you eat :).
Portions: 150g tuna
Ingredients:
– 150g tuna, ideally a strip
– 30g black or white sesame seeds
– 20ml sesame oil
– salt and pepper to taste
– 20ml vegetable oil
For the sauce:
– 70ml tangerine juice
– 10ml lime juice
– 20g sugar
– 50ml cider vinegar
To garnish:
– 1/2 avocado
– 1 lime
– chives
– soy sauce
Procedure:
1. Let’s start with the sauce because it needs to cool completely. Everything goes in a pot to boil until reduced to 1/4 of its original volume. You’ll notice it’s like honey. If it’s more liquid, boil it a bit more, if you over-boiled it, add a tiny bit of water.
2. Soak your tuna strip in sesame oil and add salt and pepper to it. The oil will help stick the sesame seeds.
3. Scatter the seeds on a clean surface and roll the tuna to cover it. Don’t cover the sides though.
4. Put vegetable oil on a pan and heat as much as you can. Cook each side 20 seconds. On the sides you’ll see as it cooks so you can control if it’s enough or needs more. Then it goes 5min to the freezer to shock it and stop it from continue cooking. Take it out and wait for it to come back to room temperature. Cut slices and that’s it.
5. The lime we’ll cut it in segments. First we peel it like in the pictures: take off the top and bottom and then peel going around the lime, following its shape.
6. Then release each segment by cutting at either side of the thin skin that separates them. Then cut these into 3 or 4 so they’re not that big. Also slice some chives and half an avocado.
It’s ready! Arrange your tuna nicely on the plate, drizzle the sauce on top whit love and arrange the avocado, chives and lime on top. Include a dish with soy sauce at the side and DONE! YU-MMY!
