We've made so many friends on the Hawaiian islands — and along with them, fantastic new recipes! Our dear friend Nicole Oda offers us this beautifully fresh and simple poke recipe.
Poke is a native Hawaiian dish, using one of the islands' greatest resources: seafood! In the native language, "poke" is the verb for "section," or "to slice or cut." Islanders traditionally made poke with aku (an oily tuna), or he'e (octopus), but feel free to use your favorite sushi-grade, preferably local, seafood.
The Mizuba twist, you ask? Our favorite matcha salt, of course! Matcha salt delivers wonderful vegetal notes to the rice, and elevates the tuna's natural sweetness to a whole 'nother level of umami. You couldn't ask for a better seasoning for this quick, melt-in-your-mouth lunch or dinner.
Ingredients
Serves 4
- 2 lbs fresh sushi-grade tuna (tuna belly or toro, if you can get it)
- 3 shallots, thinly sliced or minced
- 3 green onions, thinly cut
- 1 Tbsp ginger, freshly grated
- 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup shoyu/soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp Mizuba Matcha Salt, plus more to taste
- 1 tesp Chinese chili sauce
- Sesame seeds
- Optional: 1 cup diced pineapple or mango
- 2 cups uncooked rice
- 4 cups water
- Furikake rice seasoning
Recipe
- Cut tuna into 1" cubes.
- Combine tuna with remaining ingredients and refrigerate for at 30 minutes or up to a couple of hours. Letting the poke marinate longer allows all of the ingredients and sauce to fully set, resulting in a much richer taste — trust us!
- In the meantime, rinse the uncooked rice to discard excess starch.
- Cook rice in a rice cooker or stovetop (in a medium saucepan, combine water and rice, bring to a rolling boil, and reduce heat to a simmer for about 20 minutes, or until water is completely gone and rice is cooked).
- Place the rice in a bowl or serving dish, and sprinkle the desired amount of furikake and Matcha Salt and serve alongside poke. You can accompany the dish with slices of fresh avocado, pickled ginger, and radish slices.
And dessert? Yes, please!
Why not finish your lunch with a big slice of Okinawan sweet potato and haupia pie? Use Lox Stock & Barrel's awesome recipe, sprinkled with a touch of Matcha Salt to add a nice layer of sweet and salty complexity.
E ‘ai kāko! Hawaiian for “eat and enjoy!"
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