Tuna Tartare Appetizer

Ingredients

  • Tuna:
  • Tuna Tartare Appetizer
  • 1/3 lb. sashimi grade ahi tuna – chop very fine by hand
  • 1 ripe avocado (cut in pieces that will fit on crackers)
  • Sesmark rice crackers (thin little rounds) with sesame seeds
  • Marinade (for 8 oz. tuna about, but geez, you can fudge this a bit: this is not baking):
  • 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
  • 1 Tbsp. unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
  • 3/4 tsp. Asian sesame oil
  • Sauce:
  • 1 c. mayonnaise (Best Foods)
  • 2 Tbsp. (or a little less) Grand Marnier
  • 1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
  • 1 tsp. Asian chili sauce(or a little more if you (and all your guests) like spicy
  • 1 Tbsp. very finely minced fresh ginger
  • 1 tsp. finely grated orange zest
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Preparation

Step 1

Put tuna in marinade and let it sit for a bit, stirring once in awhile. This is up to you and your time constraints, but I don’t let it sit for too very long. 15 minutes? If you have to transport, just mix before you go if not going too far, I guess. I put it in the fridge. Sometimes it is a bit runny with the marinade, so you can strain it quickly (you want some sauce in there).

Sauce:
Combine all ingredients and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for no longer than 3 days. (Note: If you use the whole 2 Tbsp. Grand Marnier, it may look watery at first, but it should firm up a bit in the fridge. I use about 1 1/2 Tbsp. if I don’t have time to firm up the sauce, as otherwise it is a bit runny).

Finishing:
Place (in any order) avocado, tuna and sauce on the cracker (and you can also sprinkle with chopped pieces of chives (or a couple (gag) cilantro leaves if I am not invited to your party) and top with the sauce. You can actually pile the stuff on the crackers yourself just before you serve, which looks fabulous set out on a serving tray, but the crackers get soggy fairly quickly. It is better, I think, just to put all the pieces out and let guests serve themselves.