Tuna Tartare & Scallop Crudo with Pink Peppercorn & Spring “Salad”
If you can’t decide between a tartare, a crudo or a salad to start your meal, i’ve got the perfect dish for you. It starts with a layer of finely chopped tuna tartare, if you have access to o-toro or any fatty cut of tuna by all cost use it, you won’t be disappointed. Thinly sliced sea scallops seasoned with lemon juice, good olive oil and pink peppercorns are arranged on top and a little salad of edible spring flowers, baby arugula and tender bits of frisee gently seasoned with more olive oil, lemon juice and sel de guerande turns this dish into something not only beautiful to look at, but delicious, refreshing and light. There’s not much more you can ask for in this warm weather.
I discovered at a dinner at Esca last year that fresh, pristine, and slightly marinated raw sea scallops have a special affinity for pink peppercorn. Pink peppercorns have a fragrant, sweet, and spicy flavor reminiscent of a mild citrus zest and sweet berries which is a match made in heaven for the sweet flavor and delicate texture of sea scallops.
Some may think edible flowers are a gimmick but used sensibly they offer a wide variety of tastes from sweet to spicy and peppery which add complexity to this dish. Of course, the quality of the ingredients is crucial to the success of this dish. It’s otherwise very easy to assemble. Enjoy!
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Tuna Tartare & Scallop Crudo with Pink Peppercorn & Spring “Salad”
- serves 4
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Tuna Tartare recipe:
- 1/2 pound sushi-grade tuna, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Pinch of freshly ground pink peppercorn
- 1/4 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon mirin
- salt, to taste
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Scallop Crudo recipe:
- 8 sea scallops, finely sliced
- 1/2 Meyer lemon, juiced
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon pink peppercorn, whole
- Sel de Guérande
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For the Spring salad:
- Assorted edible Spring flowers, leaves only
- baby arugula
- frisée, tender bits only
- olive oil
- Meyer lemon
- Sel de Guérande
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To assemble the dish:
- Combine all the tuna tartare ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Chill until ready to serve.
- Combine the scallops with the Meyer lemon juice and olive oil. Chill until ready to serve.
- Using pastry rings divide the tuna tartare among 4 plates. Top each tartare with the scallop crudo and some of the remaining marinade. Season with sel de Guérande and pink peppercorn.
- Season the Spring salad with olive oil, Meyer lemon juice and salt. Top each tartare with the salad. Serve immediately.
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June 6th, 2010 at 11:38 pm
when I saw tartare on your tweet, I thought. OMG, I’d better NOT click the link…I can’t have tartare! T_T see…now i’m totally broken hearted…how gorgeous is that dish!!! i want a dress to match the colors of the dish
June 7th, 2010 at 12:00 am
How appropriate, I was just saying to eat salads at night during summer and here is yours. Beautiful as usual.
June 7th, 2010 at 12:07 am
OMG – the photos are so beautiful to look at!!! This is awesome, perfect for Hong Kong for sure!!!
Happy Eating!
Geoff
June 7th, 2010 at 12:30 am
I had something like this in a little town called Roussillon (Provence, France) last year. It was GRAND. Lovely pics! Will have to make this for myself very, very soon.
[K]
June 7th, 2010 at 1:06 am
It looks almost like a dessert! I love everything about this dish.
June 7th, 2010 at 1:27 am
mon dieu! I think that dish is just too beautiful to eat!!
June 7th, 2010 at 3:12 am
A picture of perfection and I am sure taste as well. Just looks and sounds wonderful. Thank You!
June 7th, 2010 at 3:38 am
Beautifully made and beautifully captured!!!
June 7th, 2010 at 5:30 am
Goodness me! That looks like it came from the top restaurant here. Beautiful plating and attention to detail!
June 7th, 2010 at 7:26 am
Oh Zenedine…you’ve done it again. A well-composed starter, ever so elegant.
June 7th, 2010 at 8:52 am
Another exquisite dish.
June 7th, 2010 at 8:52 am
P.S. You need to get a ‘tweet this’ button on your blog. I’m doing it anyway, but it would make it easier.
June 7th, 2010 at 11:12 am
An exquisitely beautiful dish and I’m sure it tastes every bit as delicious as it looks.
June 7th, 2010 at 11:48 am
This would be appropriate for breakfast… right? Because it’s 8:45 a.m. and I could chow down on this dish right now, without hesitation.
June 7th, 2010 at 3:02 pm
It’s too cute to be eaten.
June 8th, 2010 at 5:53 am
It looks great, very delicate and tasty. I had a similar two or three times in France. Yummy!
June 8th, 2010 at 7:45 am
Cheers, mate!
Very Japanese in concept, although you will make quite a few chefs here blush with envy!
Keep me posted!
Best regards,
Robert-Gilles
June 8th, 2010 at 12:59 pm
So beautiful…would almost be afraid to ruin it by eating, but I would quickly get past it. Sounds amazing!
June 8th, 2010 at 9:01 pm
This is gorgeous and I can only imagine the flavors…I just had some edible flowers today. They were delicious almost too pretty to eat (but I did anyway!).
June 10th, 2010 at 12:54 am
Unbelievable! It Almost to pretty to eat…but not quite. I feel inspired!
June 17th, 2010 at 2:10 pm
Hey Zenchef great photos!!!!
June 18th, 2010 at 2:49 pm
Woah, gorgeous!!!
June 19th, 2010 at 1:05 pm
Lovely! Another beautiful dish! And another one I would like to eat right now. Please?
July 17th, 2010 at 2:25 pm
This is elegant and very Zen! Really beautiful. Thanks
July 24th, 2010 at 11:20 pm
How do you eat something so beautiful?