Live the Live ™

One of our favorite restaurants in Southern New England is The Back Eddy in Westport, Massachusetts, and one of their best-selling appetizers is a simple but delicious deviled egg plate with raw tuna on top. It’s so good, it’s the only thing on the menu that my wife and I refuse to share…we always get a plate for ourselves!

We can’t always get back to the Back Eddy, so when the cravings hit, I make my version of this dish at home. Of course, my version has a lot less finesse to it…but a lot more tuna, which is what I crave! It takes a little time to make it, but it’s so worth it…

 

 

6 hard-boiled eggs
1/4 cup + extra mayonnaise
8 oz. high quality raw tuna
3 tablespoons soy sauce (I use gluten-free)
1/2 teaspoon chili oil
1/4 cup finely chopped scallions
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
fish roe (optional, see below)
handful fresh spinach, or cucumbers (see below)

 

My favorite method of hard-boiling eggs is to put them in a pot of cold water. Turn the heat on high and bring to a boil. As soon as the water boils, turn the heat off and place a lid on the pot. Let it sit for 15 minutes. Perfect eggs every time. Remove the eggs from the water and cool them in the fridge, or in a bowl of ice water if you’re going to be serving this dish right away.

Here in Rhode Island, I can get fresh tuna right off the boat. Ideally, they say you should freeze all raw seafood before eating it. In general, killing parasites requires freezing and storing fish at a surrounding temperature of minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit or colder for seven days; or freezing at a surrounding temperature of minus 31 degrees or colder until the fish is solid and storing at the same temperature for 15 hours; or freezing at a surrounding temperature of minus 31 degrees until the fish is solid and storing at minus 4 degrees or below for 24 hours.

That’s a lot of work and worry. I find that I can get high quality tuna already frozen into convenient bricks at Whole Foods or on-line at websites like Vital Choice, one of my favorites for extremely high quality, responsibly sourced seafood.

 

If the tuna is frozen, let it thaw a little. If it’s fresh, place it into the freezer for about 10 minutes to firm up. That makes it easier to cube up. Slice the tuna carefully into the smallest cubes you can make. Once done, place the tuna in a bowl and put it back in the fridge to continue its slow thawing until ready to use.

In a separate small bowl, combine the soy sauce and the chili oil. Set aside.

Finely chop the scallions. Set aside.

Once the eggs have cooled, peel them and cut them in half. Scoop out the yolks and place them in a bowl, starting with 1/4 cup of the mayonnaise. Add more mayo if needed. Mix well. I use a fork or whisk to get as many of the lumps out as possible. If you want to go crazy, you can put them in a blender or food processor to make a creamy puree. You can place the puree in a piping bag and carefully squeeze it out into each egg half. I simply use a spoon.

Once all the egg halves are filled, place them on a spinach leaf-covered dish and put them back in the fridge until ready to serve. Or, instead of the bed of spinach, peel a cucumber and cut the ends off. Slice the cuke into 1/2″ thick slices. Then, using a melon baller, carefully scoop out the seeds from the center to make a “cuke donut.” Use these as little stands to hold your eggs on the plate.

When you’re ready to serve, take the tuna out of the fridge. Pour the soy sauce/chili oil mix into the bowl with the tuna and mix well. Let the tuna marinate for just 2 minutes. Pour off the excess marinade, or it’ll get too salty.

Remove the plate of eggs from the fridge and carefully put a small spoonful of tuna on top of each one. Garnish with the sesame seeds and the chopped scallions and serve immediately.