Raw tuna with chilli sauce (Chamchi whe)

Tuna tartare is a delicacy worldwide. It has been adapted to suit palates by adding local ingredients.

Tower peppers or gochujang is a Korean pepper that has a sweet bite. The pepper is also fermented into a paste called gochugaru, commonly used in Korea. This dish uses both of these ingredients, soy sauce and sesame oil, to form a flavourful sauce that smothers the tuna. The chef has to be careful in using this sauce, too little and the tuna is bland, and too much and the sauce overpowers the delicate tuna. This is a dish about that perfect balance. Of course, serve some of the sauce on the side for those diners who would like more. The tuna is beautiful wit a sweet-spicy sauce that brings it alive.

This Korean cookbook is filled with an array of traditional recipes, including soups, stews, and, of course, many banchan. It opened up the world of Korean cuisine to me, one that I have so much to learn about.

For more recipes from this cookbook, click here.

Ingredients:

for the chilli sauce:

2 tablespoons gochujang chilli paste

1 tablespoon gochugaru chilli flakes

1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon roasted sesame oil

1 garlic clove, minced

8 oz. fresh sushi-grade tuna

5-6 scallions, white parts only, thinly sliced into 3-inch slivers

1 teaspoon sesame seeds, lightly toasted

Lettuce leaves or nori sheets

Mix all the ingredients for the sauce well. Taste for sweetness and spice. The sauce should be rich and spicy with hints of sweetness. Set aside.

Cut the tuna into thin slices about 1X1 inch. Toss with 1/2-3/4 of the chilli sauce and massage the sauce into the tuna. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours so the flavours have time to penetrate the flesh of the tuna.

Add the scallions to a bowl of cold water to allow them to curl up.

To serve, add a lettuce leaf or nori sheet to a plate. Top with 11 1/2 tablespoons of the tuna. Garnish with scallions and sesame seeds. Serve cold.