The hero of Tuna Sashimi Salad is the garlic-flavoured sesame dressing, which is inspired by the dressing made by the world-famous Japanese chef Nobu Matsuhisa, although mine does not resemble Nob's dressing at all.
The salad can be any fresh salad leaves but including julienned daikon (white radish) gives a Japanese touch to the presentation of the salad.
Don't forget to see the section 'MEAL IDEAS' below the recipe card! It gives you a list of dishes that I have already posted and this recipe that can make up a complete meal. I hope it is of help to you.
- 200-250g / 0.4-0.6lb sashimi tuna block (cuboid, note 1)
- Black pepper and salt (note 2)
- 2 tsp oil
- 3 cups mixed salad leaves
- 60g / 2.1oz cucumber halved vertically , then diagonally sliced thinly
- 90g / 3.2oz white radish finely julienned to 10cm long (note 3)
- 75g / 2.6oz yellow mini tomatoes halved
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Put all ingredients of Garlic Sesame Dressing except the oils in a jar and shake well until the sugar is dissolved. Add the oils and shake well.
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Leave the julienned daikon in a bowl of cold water for 10 minutes to crisp up the daikon strands. Drain and gently squeeze the water out.
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Make Tuna Tataki as per the instruction ‘Tuna Tataki’ in the recipe card Tuna Tataki (Seared Tuna) with Ponzu. Please also see the photos in the post.
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Mix the salad leaves and sliced cucumbers in a bowl.
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Put the salad leaves and the cucumber slices in a bowl and mix.
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Plate the salad leaves with cucumbers on one side of the serving plate, leaving a small space for the tuna slices (note 4).
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Place julienned daikon on top of the salad leaves in the centre, then scatter the tomatoes.
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Place sliced Tuna Tataki in two rows, overlapping each other.
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Serve with the dressing on the side.
1. My tuna block was about 3cm x 3cm x 15cm / 1⅛" x 1⅛" x 5⅞", which makes 3cm2 / 1⅛ in2 slices. The shape of the block does not have to be an exact cuboid, providing that the size of the slice is not too large. You can even have two short blocks.
Instead of tuna, you can use sashimi quality salmon, kingfish, snapper, bonito, etc. I would not sear white flesh fish as you cannot create the stunning effect of the seared trimming around each piece. The thickness and the shape of the sashimi slices can also vary but do not make it too thick like standard sashimi.
2. The amount of pepper depends on how peppery you want the seared tuna to be.
3. If you have a very fine (1.3-1.5mm / 1⁄16") julienne slicer, that’s the easiest. Cut daikon into a 10cm long block then julienne it.
If you have a slicer that can slice vegetables to 1.3-1.5mm / 1⁄16" thick, then slice a 10cm / 4" block of daikon. Pile the sliced daikon up neatly and cut the pile very finely lengthwise to make 10cm fine strips. I used this method today.
If you don’t have a slicer or julienne slicer, you can cut a narrow 10cm 4" long daikon block and use a peeler to make thin slices, then pile several slices together and julienne them.
4. Because I used a long plate, the plating was not symmetrical. There is no right or wrong when plating the salad and tuna.
5. Nutrition per serving.
serving: 240g calories: 291kcal fat: 19g (29%) saturated fat: 2.3g (12%) trans fat: 0.0g polyunsaturated fat: 8.3g monounsaturated fat: 7.2g cholesterol: 26mg (9%) sodium: 920mg (38%) potassium: 646mg (18%) carbohydrates: 12g (4%) dietary fibre: 2.5g (10%) sugar: 6.9g protein: 19g vitamin a: 47% vitamin c: 28% calcium: 5.3% iron: 9.8%