Tuna Tartare with Avocado, Pork Belly & Strawberries

Tuna Tartare with Avocado, Pork Belly and Strawberries

While I love eating healthy (I feel so much better) - from time to time by body craves red meat, pork belly/bacon and cheeses.

#portioncontrol

I stopped by Sprouts today (LOVE that grocery store!) and piled my grocery cart full of organic fruits, vegetables, eggs and whole grains. Colors galore. I found a sliver of ahi tuna that was marked to go, so I figured I would purchase it and create a small dish, to accompany a kale salad, for lunch.

1 filet of ahi tuna (3-4oz) (be absolutely certain that it is sushi-grade if you are going to prepare it raw)
1/2 medium avocado
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp 0% Greek Yogurt
1 tsp ground chia seeds (optional)
1 tsp hemp seeds (optional)
1 tsp sesame seeds (optional)
1 tsp Turmeric (optional)
1 pinch coarse sea salt or smoked sea salt
1 pinch cayenne pepper

1 small piece of pork belly (about 3 inches long)
4 strawberries

To begin, heat a sauté pan on medium-high heat, then place the pork belly (like bacon) on the pan. Allow the pork belly to render its own fat - meaning that you will see its own juices and oils dispersing into the pan. Flip the pork every few minutes - allowing each side to become crispy. Once crispy and cooked, remove the sauté pan from the heat and place the pork belly on a paper towel (will absorb the excess oil). Do not discard the rendered fat that remains in the sauté pan! Instead, hull the strawberries (chop off and discard their green leaf tops), then cute into quarters. Lightly sprinkle with salt, then place in the sauté pan to be coated with the pork belly fat. This will be a brilliant compliment to the sweet/savory component of this dish.

For the ahi tuna - In a medium bowl, smash the avocado with a fork, until it is mushy and soft. Add the Greek Yogurt, lemon juice, salt, pepper, turmeric, chia seeds, hemp seeds and sesame seeds. I add the seeds and Turmeric for health benefits (not too much of an added flavor - will explain more about the benefits in a following post!) Mix well, the add tuna (finely diced). Again, mix all ingredients. You may also drizzle a little of the rendered pork belly fat into the mixture, if you so choose... would be a nice compliment if you chose to use the smoked sea salt to season!

Refrigerate the tuna mixture for at least 20 minutes... best when served cold.

Presentation-wise... use a medium ring-mold in order to shape the tuna... then top with the pork belly and strawberries. I cut my pork belly into small squares in order to make not only more presentable, but easier to consume as well. Top with micro-greens... they give it a presentable, delicate touch.

“Cooks are in some ways very much like actors; they must be fit and strong, since acting and cooking are two of the most exacting professions. They must be blessed – or cursed, whichever way you care to look at it – with what is called the artistic temperament, which means that if they are to act or cook at all well, it cannot be for duds or dummies.” - Andre Simon

Love y'all dearly!