Chef Taka Kishikawa has been creating flavorful Japanese dishes since he was 16 and working part-time as a chef in his hometown of Fukuoka in Japan. Now at Bushwick’s Dock Asian, where customers can choose between carefully curated sections of Thai, sushi, and ramen dishes, the executive chef oversees the restaurant’s sushi and hot pan menus.
Dock Asian’s tuna steak dish—which you can find in the restaurant’s hot pan menu section—is served on an iron skillet. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t have your tuna steak at home and eat it too. In fact, a similar home-style tuna steak don or bowl recipe can easily be recreated in the comfort of your own kitchen.
“I wanted to make a dish that even people who are not fans of sushi or [raw] sashimi could enjoy,” chef Taka said of the inspiration behind this home recipe. Although the recipe calls for sashimi grade tuna steak, rest assured a regular fresh tuna steak works just as well. The seasoned chef shared a great tip for trying new recipes at home.
“Don’t be afraid of failure and to try new things,” he said. “Even if you do make a mistake or it doesn’t turn out the way you expect, you can learn from that experience.” He also encouraged home cooks to experiment with this recipe by using other fish, meat, or even substituting the vegetables with others.
Tuna Steak Bowl (Serves 2)
Ingredients
10 oz fresh tuna steak
2 oz shimeji mushroom (available at most Asian supermarkets)
2 oz cauliflower (small to medium-sized florets)
3 ½ oz carrots, sliced medium
1 tbsp butter
2 cups white rice, cooked
½ oz scallions, chopped finely (for garnish)
Sauce
5 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp sake
1 ½ tbsp mirin
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp garlic (grated)
2 tbsp onion (grated)
Directions:
1. Set a medium-sized pot with water over high heat. While you wait for the water to come to a boil, make the sauce.
2. Add all of the ingredients for the sauce into a small bowl and mix well. Save for later.
3. Once the water comes to a rolling boil, add the carrots and cauliflower and cook for 10 minutes. Strain the vegetables and set aside.
4. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Then add the butter and let it melt completely.
5. As soon as the foam from the butter subsides, quickly add the shimeji mushrooms and the boiled carrots and cauliflower to the frying pan and sauté for 2–3 minutes.
6. Push the vegetables to the sides of the frying pan to create space in the center of the pan to sear the tuna. Add the tuna steak to the frying pan and sear on one side for about 45 seconds or to your liking (tip: make sure you don’t overcook!). Once done, use a spatula to turn over the tuna and sear the other side for the same amount of time. Add the saved sauce to the pan and remove the tuna immediately from the pan and set on a cutting board. The middle of the tuna should still be rare.
7. Give the vegetables a stir for about 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat.
8. Divide the cooked white rice into two serving bowls.
9. Slice the tuna steak against the grain in approximately ¼ -inch slices. Take half the tuna and carefully fan the slices over the rice in one bowl. Repeat with the remaining tuna.
10. Garnish the rice bowl with the vegetables.
11. Pour the sauce from the frying pan over the tuna and rice, use as much as you like. Garnish the slices of tuna with the chopped scallions and serve.
However, if cooking isn’t your thing, you can enjoy this dish at Dock Asian Eatery.
Images courtesy of Dock Asian Eatery
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