Tuna Poke
By Matthew FairmanPublished on February 21, 2022
Time
25 minutes
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Before You Begin
Freshness is key when serving fish raw. The flesh of raw tuna should appear moist and shiny; feel firm to the touch (the flesh should spring right back when pressed); and smell clean, not fishy. Notify your fishmonger that you plan to serve the fish raw and inquire about its freshness. Try to have the fishmonger slice tuna steaks to order that have little to no connective tissue, since it can be unpleasantly chewy when eaten raw. Vidalia, Maui, or Walla Walla sweet onions will all work here. If you can’t find sweet onions, you can substitute a yellow onion by soaking the thinly sliced onion in ice water for 20 minutes and then draining and patting it dry. Serve this poke as a snack or an appetizer, or make it a meal by serving it over warm rice. Furikake is a Japanese seasoning blend that comes in many styles. We recommend using a blend containing dried seaweed (nori and/or kombu), bonito flakes, and sesame seeds. Look for it at an Asian market, in the Asian section of the grocery store, or online. This recipe contains raw or undercooked seafood, which comes with inherent risks. To learn more about food safety, check out this guide.
Instructions
- Gently combine 1 pound skinless yellowfin tuna, cut into ¾-inch cubes; ¼ cup thinly sliced sweet onion; ⅓ cup finely chopped salted dry-roasted macadamia nuts; 3 thinly sliced scallion whites; 3 tablespoons soy sauce; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil; 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger; 1 minced garlic clove; and ¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes in large bowl using silicone spatula. Season with salt to taste. Serve, sprinkled with furikake, if using, and thinly sliced scallion greens. (Poke can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.)
Time
25 minutesYield
Serves 4Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Poke (“poh-KAY”) translates from Hawaiian as “to cut or slice into pieces” and refers to a raw fish salad that’s become increasingly popular across the rest of the United States. We looked to simple, classic versions from Hawaii for inspiration for our recipe. This tuna poke is a version of ahi shoyu poke—one of Hawaii’s most popular recipes—and it rests on a foundation of fresh, dense, meaty, clean-tasting yellowfin tuna. We dressed our poke with a simple, savory mix of soy sauce and sesame oil. Sweet onion, scallions, pepper flakes, ginger, and garlic added pungency, spice, and texture. Finishing with a garnish of furikake (a multitextured Japanese seasoning blend commonly containing dried seaweed, bonito flakes, and sesame seeds) layered on various textures and gave us an easy, all-in-one ingredient for boosting the umami in our tuna poke.
Before You Begin
Freshness is key when serving fish raw. The flesh of raw tuna should appear moist and shiny; feel firm to the touch (the flesh should spring right back when pressed); and smell clean, not fishy. Notify your fishmonger that you plan to serve the fish raw and inquire about its freshness. Try to have the fishmonger slice tuna steaks to order that have little to no connective tissue, since it can be unpleasantly chewy when eaten raw. Vidalia, Maui, or Walla Walla sweet onions will all work here. If you can’t find sweet onions, you can substitute a yellow onion by soaking the thinly sliced onion in ice water for 20 minutes and then draining and patting it dry. Serve this poke as a snack or an appetizer, or make it a meal by serving it over warm rice. Furikake is a Japanese seasoning blend that comes in many styles. We recommend using a blend containing dried seaweed (nori and/or kombu), bonito flakes, and sesame seeds. Look for it at an Asian market, in the Asian section of the grocery store, or online. This recipe contains raw or undercooked seafood, which comes with inherent risks. To learn more about food safety, check out this guide.
Instructions
- Gently combine 1 pound skinless yellowfin tuna, cut into ¾-inch cubes; ¼ cup thinly sliced sweet onion; ⅓ cup finely chopped salted dry-roasted macadamia nuts; 3 thinly sliced scallion whites; 3 tablespoons soy sauce; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil; 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger; 1 minced garlic clove; and ¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes in large bowl using silicone spatula. Season with salt to taste. Serve, sprinkled with furikake, if using, and thinly sliced scallion greens. (Poke can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.)
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