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Ahi Tuna Tartare Recipe with Ginger

Aug 31, 2018 · by Valentina · 27 Comments

This Ahi Tuna Tartare Recipe with Ginger is super fresh and flavorful and it only has four ingredients! It's a delightful hors d'oeuvre or first course for a dinner party.  Ahi tuna tartare in butter lettuce cups with avocado slices on a sushi mat.

My husband and I honeymooned on the island of Huahini in French Polynesia. It was an incredibly amazing vacation -- from the soft sand and clear ocean, to our hut on stilts and the amazing food!

Inspiration

We ate a ton of fresh fish and tropical fruits, all delicious. However, the most memorable dish we ate was an Ahi Tuna Tartare at a small, charming restaurant in the village. (We had to take a boat to get to the village, by the way.)

During the week, we went to this restaurant several times, just for the tartare -- and it's the inspiration behind this  Ahi Tuna Tartare recipe.

Valentina in front of restaruant in Huahini, Tahiti

I've kept the recipe stored away in my mind -- which was easy because I remembered two important things: one, not including the salt there were four ingredients, and two, the size of the cuts.

What made this Tuna Tartare so special?

It was the size of the cuts of ginger and onion that made for a wonderful final texture, which ultimately enhanced how good it tasted!

close up of super finely chopped ginger, ahi tuna, white onion and chives, in a glass bowl.

What is Tuna Tartare?

  • Taretare has a few different culinary meanings.
  1. In French cuisine, Sauce Tartare (Tartare Sauce) is a white sauce made with mayonnaise and hard boiled egg yolks. The sauce is garnished with onions, chives and capers, and is usually served with seafood.
  2. Also in French cuisine, Boeuf à la Tartare (Beef Tartare) is a dish composed of chopped, raw, lean beef served with capers, onions, paresly and raw egg.
  • Typically when you hear "tartare" it's referring to beef.  Tuna Tartare and others have become quite popular. The idea of the dish is very similar to that of the Beef Tartare, only with a different protein.

Ginger Ahi Tuna Tartare recipe in wonton cups on bamboo sushi mat

This Ginger Ahi Tuna Tartare is my favorite one I've ever had. I love the simplicity of it. An incredible amount of flavor is packed into just a few ingredients.

This is a fantastic recipe for weekend dinner parties!  And if you ask me, preparing it is a lovely way to spend a weekend afternoon.

Ahi tuna tartare in butter lettuce cups with avocado slices on a sushi mat.

What to Serve with it

  • Chips.
  • Rice.
  • A fork.
  • Wonton crisps
  • Butter lettuce cups with avocado (pictured above).

Ginger Ahi Tuna Tartare

I hope you love this recipe as much and I do.

Ginger Ahi Tuna Tartare Recipe

This Ahi Tuna Tartare recipe is super fresh, super flavorful and only has four ingredients. It's a delightful hors d'oeuvre or first course for a dinner party.

Serves about 2 dozen as an hors d'oeuvre and about 1 dozen as a 1st course

  • 1 pound sushi grade Ahi tuna, (cut into ¼ inch (or smaller) dice)
  • ½ cup finely chopped white onion ((about ⅛-inch dice))
  • ¼ cup super finely chopped fresh ginger, (peeled)
  • ¼ cup super finely chopped chives, (washed and dried)
  • salt to taste
  1. Combine all of the ingredients except for the salt. Cover with plastic and let the flavors come together in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes and up to 2 hours. (Two hours is ideal.)

  2. Season to taste with salt and serve. (Here's How to Season to Taste.) Serve with chips, lettuce leaves, wonton crisps, or on a plate!

Calorie count is only an estimate.

Appetizer
Asian
party food, fish for dinner party

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. sippitysup

    January 02, 2012 at 6:35 pm

    It's like poke given a fancy little place to live! GREG

    Reply
  2. Jenny @ Savour the Senses

    January 02, 2012 at 8:29 pm

    Oh.My.God. Could this get any better?! Looks AMAZING!

    Reply
    • valentina

      January 03, 2012 at 7:19 am

      Thanks, Jenny! 🙂

      Reply
  3. Anna

    January 03, 2012 at 1:09 am

    Wow! My husband will give me a weekend getaway as soon as he tastes this. He loves seafoods, tuna way on top his list...I hope I can find really great sushi grade tuna in the store. Thanks for sharing! Have a great year ahead, Chef!

    Reply
    • valentina

      January 03, 2012 at 7:20 am

      Hi, Anna -- oh I do hope your husband takes you somewhere wonderful! Happy New Year! xo

      Reply
  4. beti

    January 03, 2012 at 3:20 am

    I love tuna tartare, your presentation is divine!

    Reply
    • valentina

      January 03, 2012 at 7:21 am

      Thank you, Beti! 🙂

      Reply
  5. Dina Conforti

    January 03, 2012 at 2:50 am

    This looks gorgeous!! I can only imagine how yummy it tastes! Bon Apetit!

    Reply
  6. Kim

    January 12, 2012 at 6:20 pm

    What a beautifully presented bite!

    There's a sushi house near here that we frequent once a week. They are known for their "poke bowl," which is similar to your tartare. I've been meaning to make my own version... you have now inspired me. Very creative!

    [K]

    Reply
  7. Shut Up & Cook | The Attainable Gourmet

    November 25, 2012 at 5:11 am

    Yum!

    I'm trying to think of a good veggie to do with a seared ahi tuna dish.

    Any ideas?

    Reply
    • valentina

      November 25, 2012 at 6:19 am

      I always love bok choy with this sort of dish -- here are a couple yummy recipes -- Bok Choy with Crispy Garlic Orange Sesame Sauce & Bok Choy Pepper Stir Fry . . . Thanks for checking out my blog! Enjoy!

      Reply
  8. Catherine Brown

    September 01, 2018 at 3:20 pm

    One of my very favorite things! and that's a lotta ginger too... just the way I like it!

    Reply
    • valentina

      September 03, 2018 at 5:53 pm

      Here's to a whole lotta ginger! 🙂

      Reply
  9. linda spiker

    September 01, 2018 at 5:25 pm

    Ginger and ahi were meant for each other. Pretty little bites too!

    Reply
    • valentina

      September 03, 2018 at 5:53 pm

      I agree. Thank you! 🙂

      Reply
  10. Danielle

    September 01, 2018 at 7:28 pm

    This looks so simple, tasty, and restaurant worthy. I really love the idea.

    Reply
    • valentina

      September 03, 2018 at 5:54 pm

      Why thank you! 🙂

      Reply
  11. Natalie

    September 01, 2018 at 8:42 pm

    I love Ahi tuna! Looks so delicious and perfect for hosting and dinner parties!

    Reply
    • valentina

      September 03, 2018 at 5:54 pm

      Thanks so much!

      Reply
  12. Chichi

    September 02, 2018 at 12:34 am

    I definitely love this recipe. I am not a seafood fan. But this recipe and the colors plus the little edible ‘dishes’ ( thanks for also sharing how the crisps are made) make me want to make these ASAP

    Reply
    • valentina

      September 03, 2018 at 5:54 pm

      Thank you so much. Maybe it'll turn you into a fish lover. 🙂

      Reply
  13. David

    September 02, 2018 at 7:07 am

    Love your explanation of tartartare! And how wonderful to bring back memories of your honeymoon! And your method for the wonton cups is invaluable! I make a scallop ceviche and those will be perfect for it!

    Reply
    • valentina

      September 03, 2018 at 5:55 pm

      Scallop Ceviche! I'll have some of that, please! 🙂

      Reply
  14. Colette

    September 04, 2018 at 12:55 pm

    Fresh, beautiful, refreshing...just what we need to eat in these hot summer days!

    Reply
    • valentina

      September 05, 2018 at 10:12 am

      Thank you, Colette! Yes!

      Reply
  15. Healthy Kitchen 101

    September 07, 2018 at 1:21 am

    Wow, they looks so fresh! I had thought that the pink part was grapes at the first sight.
    can I cut the tuna bigger? I prefer eating them in big pieces.
    - Natalie Ellis

    Reply
    • valentina

      September 07, 2018 at 10:11 am

      Hi Natalie! Yes, the tuna can be cut in larger pieces. If you do that, it would be more like Poke. (Also delicious!) Thank you!

      Reply

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