Escabeche of Ahi Tuna with Papaya-Mango Relish

Escabeche of Ahi Tuna with Papaya-Mango Relish

Makes 50 appetizer-sized portions

Escabeche of Ahi Tuna with Papaya-Mango Relish 

This is one of my favorite appetizers-to-impress. Several good friends were recently kind enough to have a All Larue dinner for 14 guests – all from recipes from my blog! My responsibility was to bring an unpublished surprise appetizer. This is the recipe that kicked off a memorable evening. It was truly magical evening – the menu is posted below should you be so inclined!

It can, actually must, be done in advance and scaled up or down to feed a small dinner party or a large group gathering. It could also work as an entrée. Escabeche (es-kah-BECH-ay) is a classic Spanish preparation in which you sear meat or fish, marinate it in a vinegary sauce loaded with spices, then serve it cold or at room temperature. I have given it a bit of an Asian twist with the addition of wasabi to counter the sweet papaya-mango relish. Crunch is provided by the use of either a deep fried wonton wrapper or your favorite tortilla chip.

There is nothing quite like fresh fish. And when it’s fresh, the simplest preparation will often suffice. Yellowfin tuna, also known as ahi, demonstrates this principle perfectly. With just the barest cooking time, the flavor of a fresh piece of ahi is sublime. Its ubiquity and popularity in sushi restaurants is a testament to how good ahi can taste served rare. In other words, less is more.

 

ONLY the freshest Ahi for this recipe!

This recipe is for an escabeche of chili crusted seared ahi tuna. You must use fresh sashimi quality tuna. No exceptions. The fish is given a generous coating of spices before being cooked. And when I say cooked, I do not really mean cooked. You really just want to sear the ahi, leaving the middle quite rare. What you get is a wonderful contrast of textures, with the buttery smooth interior juxtaposed with the crusted exterior. Then it is steeped in a marinade for 24-48 hours before serving – escabeche – referring to a dish that has marinated in an acidic mixture before serving – usually a vinegar or citrus juice.

Marinade

• 2 red onions, peeled and diced
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 10 jalapenos, seeded
• ½ C ancho chili powder
• 6 Tb ground cumin
• 2 Tb minced garlic
• 6 C fish or chicken stock
• 1 C white wine vinegar
• Kosher salt & Pepper to taste

Ahi Tuna Seasoning

• 2 Tb ancho chili powder
• 6 Tb kosher salt
• 3 Tb black pepper
• ¼ C olive oil
• 2½ - 3 lbs sashimi grade ahi tuna

Papaya-Mango Relish

• 2 mangoes, peeled, pitted and cut into ¼” dice
• 2 papayas, peeled, seeds removed and cut into ¼” dice
• 4 jalapenos, roasted, peeled, seeded and cut into ¼” dice
• 2 red peppers, roasted, peeled, seeded and cut into ¼” dice
• 1 large red onion, finely chopped. If you have time, even better if sliced and grilled before chopping
• 1 large bunch of cilantro chopped
• 6 Tb lime juice
• Kosher salt and pepper to taste 

Wonton wrappers, or Corn tortilla chips

Wasabi paste for garnish

To make the marinade:

Puree the first six ingredients in a food processor: red onions, cilantro jalapenos, ancho chili powder, ground cumin and garlic with some quick pulses. You will want it finely chopped. Pour all into a saucepan, add stock and vinegar and bring to a boil. Then, simmer gently for 10 minutes. Add salt & pepper to taste. Remove from heat and cool in refrigerator.

 

Mixing the chopped ingredients for the marinade

What the marinade looks like when done

To prepare Ahi Tuna:

Cut tuna into 2-3 equal pieces. Mix ancho chili powder, salt, black pepper together. Add in olive oil and mix thoroughly. Rub all over each piece of tuna. Preheat a cast iron skillet until water splashed in pan spatters. Sear tuna on all sides over high heat about 30-45 seconds per side. Set aside and let cool.

Seasoning rubbed on the Ahi 

Once both tuna and marinade are completely cool, immerse tuna in marinade, cover and refrigerate overnight at least and up to two days.

Ahi swimming in marinade after seared - for 24-48 hours

To make Papaya-Mango Relish:

To make the relish, the first step is to roast the peppers. A previous blog post goes into detail on how to do this:
http://cookingwithlarue.blogspot.com/2013/04/roasted-red-pepper-eggplant-soup.html

Roasted peppers

Then, stir together all ingredients for the relish: mangoes, papayas, jalapenos, red peppers, red onion, cilantro, limejuice, salt and pepper. Let stand a minimum of 30 minutes before serving and up to 4 hours.

 

Mango

And the final product

To fry Wonton Wrappers:

Using a sturdy deep pan, heat canola oil to about 350 degree F (or until a drop of water sizzles vigorously). Cut wontons in half diagonally with a serrated knife. Using a toothpick, poke three - four small holes into each half.  Drop the halves, one at a time, into the hot oil – just takes seconds before it browns, turn it over and then remove to drain on paper towels. Continue in similar fashion until all selected wrappers have been fried.

 

Wonton wrappers

Wonton only need to sizzle for a short time until they are brown

To assemble:

Remove tuna from marinade, reserving the liquid. Thinly slice the ahi against the grain at about a 25-degree angle into ¼” thick pieces with a sharp slicing knife. Do not saw at the fish with the knife. Instead, put pressure on the fish and drag your knife in one long stroke. Set them aside.

I like to arrange all the component pieces onto a large serving tray. If assembled in advance, the fried wonton or tortilla chip becomes soggy. It may require that you prepare and serve your guests a few at first until they get the hang of it and can do their own.

To serve: Place a small seared piece of ahi on wonton or chip. Put a bit of the marinade on top. Next add a small bit of papaya-mango relish and dribble a bit of wasabi on top or nearby on the serving plate. 

Various stages of completion. Note how little of the Ahi is cooked....just the edges.

If by some miracle there is any left, the fish will stay in good shape for a week or more, so long as the vinegar marinade sauce covers it.

I hope you will give this a try. The first time may seem a bit daunting but it actually is quite easy and forgiving. It is key to use only the freshest of fish – remember, no exceptions.

The only wine to serve with this is Champagne!

Buen Apetito!

Larue

Menu from the First Cooking with Larue Dinner:

The Cooking with Larue dinner with the soup duo served

All recipes are on the Blog and can be found by using the Search function

Escabeche of Ahi Tuna with Papaya-Mango Relish

Parmesan Thyme Crackers

Soup Duo: Roasted Yellow Pepper Soup & Roasted Tomato Soup with Serrano Cream

Spinach, Lentil and Feta Salad with Sour Cherry Vinaigrette

Corn & Tomato Salad with Cilantro Dressing

Duck Breasts with Honey & Balsamic

Lamb Meat Loaf with Red Wine Glaze

Orzo with Grilled Zucchini & Sun-dried Tomatoes

Ottolenghi’s Flourless Chocolate Cake

Grilled Pork Chops with Fresh Plum Chutney

Grilled Pork Chops with Fresh Plum Chutney

Serves 4

Grilled Pork Chops with Fresh Plum Chutney 

Here is a fresh twist on a summer favorite…grilled pork chops. What a summer time treat when plums are ripe. Indian spices can play up the sour kick from the plum skins, and both are fantastic with pork’s natural sweetness. Pork is the “other white meat” as well as relatively inexpensive, tender and flavorful.  It is quite a bit leaner than similar cuts of beef. USDA recently announced that pork could be safely cooked to 145 degrees F followed by a three-minute rest time, resulting in juicy and tender pork. This recipe is a little more complex, but well worth the effort!

Last fall, I posted a blog titled “Brined Pork Chop with Fennel Pollen” (cookingwithlarue.blogspot.com/2012/09/brined-pork-chops-with-fennel-pollen.html). It is truly an amazing pork chop that follows a three-day brine. While I might not always brine for three days, I truly do always brine both pork and chicken for as long as time allows…at least overnight.  See the brine recipe that was posted – but if time is tight, a simple mix of sugar, salt and water with an overnight soak will make for a demonstrable improvement in flavor, texture and tenderness in the pork chop. Brining is a powerful tool as it cures meat and seasons it uniformly. Because of the osmotic effect of salt, the meat actually retains more moisture after cooking.

For Simple Pork Brine:

• ¾ C coarse Kosher salt *
• ¾ C granulated sugar
• 1 C boiling water
• 1 Gallon cold water
• 1 Tb black pepper

*All salts are not equal. 1 C table salt = 1½ C Morton Kosher salt = 2C Diamond Crystal Kosher salt

Grilled Pork Chops with Fresh Plum Chutney

• 1 lb. small firm-ripe red-purple plums, such as Santa Rosa, halved and pitted
• 1 Serrano chili, thinly sliced
• 1/3 C sliced green onions
• 2 Tb cider vinegar
• 3 Tb dark brown sugar
• 1 Tb finely chopped fresh ginger
• 1½ tsp yellow mustard seeds
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 1-2 dried bay leaves
• 1 tsp crushed coriander seeds
• About 2 tsp kosher salt, divided
• 2 tsp black pepper, divided
• 3 ½ Tb olive oil, divided
• 1 Tb ground coriander
• Zest of 2 lemons
• 4 pork loin rib chops
• 3 Tb coarsely chopped cilantro 

For the Brine, mix kosher salt, sugar, pepper and 1 C boiling water. Mix until sugar and salts are dissolved. Add 1 gallon cold water. Once completely cool, submerge the 4 pork loin chops and store in a refrigerator at least 12 hours, preferably overnight and up to 3 days.

Chop half to two-thirds of the quantity of plums. Put halved and chopped plums, the chile and green onions in a deep medium bowl; set aside. Microwave vinegar and 2 Tb sugar until steaming, about 30 seconds, then stir until sugar dissolves. 

Onions & chilies

Put ginger, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, bay leaves, crushed coriander and 1 tsp each salt and pepper in a small bowl.

 

Spices for the chutney

Heat 2 Tb oil in a small frying pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add ginger mixture and cook, stirring, until mustard seeds start to pop, 15 – 30 seconds. Remove from heat and stir until cumin seeds are a shade darker 1-2 minutes. Add vinegar-sugar mixture. 

Spices with vinegar-sugar mixture

Stir into plum mixture and let chutney stand for at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Chutney can be made 1 day ahead. Cover, chill and rewarm before serving.

 

Final chutney product

Meanwhile, heat a grill to medium (350 to 450 degrees F) Combine ground coriander and lemon zest in a bowl. If pork has not been brined, add remaining 1 tsp salt and pepper to this mixture. Pull pork from brine, rinse and dry. About 20 minutes before serving, rub pork chops with remaining 1½ Tb oil, then with coriander mixture. Taste chutney and add more sugar if you like.

 

Prepping the meat

Grill meat covered, turning over once, until barely pink in center, 12-15 minutes.  Internal temperature should be 140-145 degrees. Transfer to a platter and let rest 5 minutes. Stir cilantro into chutney. Set pork chops on plates and spoon chutney and juices on top.

 

With manly grill marks!

The ideal chutney balances sweet, spicy, and savory, and that’s what we’ve done with this plum version. The mustard seed and plums play off each other for a condiment that’d dress up anything from grilled chicken to a grilled pork chop. Leftover chutney could also be used on a tuna fish sandwich, on top of grill duck breast, chicken or quail.

A California Pinot Noir is the quintessential wine with pork. Other choices would be a fruity Zinfandel, Syrah or Merlot. If white wines are your preference, serve with a California Chardonnay. However, recognize that with the vinegar-based chutney, if too heavy-handed with the vinegar, will make any wine pairing challenging. However, in this case, the sweetness of the plums and Indian spices render this unproblematic. So, open your favorite wine and enjoy a truly summer grilled special meal.

Larue