Teun came over to cook together for the first time again after my trip to Australia, and we created this appetizer together.  This use of runner beans was inspired by snow peas that looked like seaweed at Vermeer. The combination of the raw tuna with the crispy runner beans and the spicy dressing works really well.

Here’s what we did…

Ingredients

For 2 servings

100-125 grams (4 oz) sashimi grade tuna

100-125 grams (4 oz) runner beans (or snow peas)

pinch of baking powder

sesame seeds, toasted

1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

3 Tbsp Japanese soy sauce

1 Tbsp neutral oil (we used rice oil)

1 tsp sesame oil

shichimi tōgarashi to taste

Preparation

Split the two halves of the runner beans with a small sharp knife and remove the seeds.

Slice the runner beans into thin strips.

Put the runner beans in a saucepan and cover them with water. Add a pinch of baking powder to preserve their bright green color. (This will turn the cooking water alkaline.)

Bring to a boil and cook for a few minutes or until the beans are tender but still crispy.

Cool them in ice water.

Pat the beans dry with paper towels.

Cut the tuna into tartare. Do not chop too finely if you’d like to eat this with chop sticks. We kept some of the tuna in strips to make it easier to plate.

Make the dressing by mixing soy sauce, oil, sesame oil, lime juice, and shichimi tōgarashi. Taste and adjust to your liking.

Mix most of the beans with 2 Tbsp of the dressing, keeping the remainer for garnish. Arrange the beans on the plates using a ring mould.

Arrange the tuna tartare on top, using the strips for the outside.

Garnish with the remaining beans and toasted sesame seeds. Finish with about a tablespoon of the dressing.

Wine pairing

This pairs well with a very dry rosé, like one from Provence or Sancerre.