If you know me you know I truly believe that I could truly eat tuna every day of my life. In fact, I often joke that if I contract mercury poising it would be a happy occasion because it would mean I would have had all the tuna I could eat… (Upon reflection, I probably won’t test this theory.)
If you have been to Nobu or its sister restaurant, Matsuhisa, you may have had the pleasure of trying the spicy tuna with crispy rice. It is simply divine- a little crispy rice square that you add your own spicy tuna mix to with a little unagi type dipping sauce. I am in heaven just thinking about it!
In love with the idea of this dish I decided to try my hand at making my own version! While not the simplest recipe I have concocted, it was well worth the effort! The key to this recipe is two fold, excellent sushi rice and very good quality tuna. The tuna can be bought from a local fish monger or, my favorite fish store, Whole Foods. Where ever you get it from make sure that it is sushi grade- this is not going to be cooked at all so freshness is key!
Ingredients for Spicy Tuna:
Spicy Mayo (recipe below)
1 Fresh Tuna Filet
1 Scallion, sliced
Ingredients for Crispy Rice:
2 cups cooked Sushi Rice
2 Tbs. Rice Vinegar
2 Tbs. Sugar
1 Tbs. Salt
Vegetable Oil for cooking
Ingredients for Spicy Mayo:
1/2 cup mayo
1/4 cup siracha
1/2 Tbs sesame oil
chopped scallions
Ingredients for Unagi Sauce:
1/4 cup Mirin
1 1/2 Tbs Sake
2 1/2 Tbs Sugar
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
Start by getting your sushi rice cooked in accordance with the package directions. While the rice is cooking start prepping your tuna. The tuna can be prepared by dicing into very fine cubes. The easiest way to do this is to start with very cold tuna and work starting with larger dice and continually getting smaller. You want a small dice here, similar to what you would find in a spicy tuna roll (because we are making a spicy tuna just like that…). Add in some chopped scallions for color and delicious flavor.
Once the tuna is diced its time to think about the rice. Put the tuna back in the fridge, covered and move to the seasoning mixture that is going to make the rice delicious. Combine the vinegar, sugar and salt in a small bowl and microwave for 30 seconds, staring halfway through. Move the cooked rice to a bowl and combine with the seasoning mixture. Allow rice to completely cool.
Back to the tuna- we need to make the spicy mayo to incorporate into the tuna. This is very simple and a big batch (bigger than the recipe states above) can keep in the fridge for a long time. I will not say how long because I am a lawyer and that kind of liability scares me… but trust me this stuff keeps for a long time! All you need to do is put these ingredients in a small bowl and mix. Add more or less siracha to taste if you want to kick things up a notch but I find a 2:1 ratio of the mayo to spice tends to work well. Once you have that slowly mix into the tuna. You want this to just be enough to coat the tuna and make it, well, spicy. Once you have that combined put it back in the fridge to cool and further combine.
Now make the unary sauce by combining the miring, sake and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat and stir until the soy sauce is dissolved. Then you are going to add the soy sauce and turn the heat up until the mixture boils, at which point you are going to reduce to a simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Once reduced and syrupy and delicious turn off the heat and transfer to a bowl where the mixture can cool.
Its rice ball time! form small rice balls with your hands. One of the easiest ways to do this is to spray your hands with non-stick cooking spray in order to keep the stickiness to a minimum. Once made you are going to lightly fry them in the oil. There is no other way to replicate the true crispy magic of this. Work in small batches as they take a bit of monitoring to get right but will be so worth it! It will take about a minute per side to get that nice sear on all sides.
To plate this dish, put the tuna in a shallow bowl and surround with the rice balls. You will ultimately use the rice as the vehicle for the tuna and the unary sauce for a little added sweet and salty yumminess! Pair with more sake for a super festive time!
Kanpai! XO