Tuna Crudo • Simple & Tasty Italian Ahi Tuna Recipe {Video} • Two Purple Figs

Tuna Crudo is one of those bright zesty and refreshing seafood recipes that feel super gourmet and fancy, yet super simple to make. This tuna recipe hails all the way from Italy, you can think of it as the Mediterranean sushi. Delicious, and show stopping–this Tuna crudo will impress you 🙂

This is yet another succulent of our fresh, raw seafood recipes. The viral and very popular Tuna Tartare , Tuna Carpaccio, Tuna Ceviche, Ahi Tuna Salad, Tuna Wrap, Salmon Tartare and more! All these use fresh quality seafood that’s consumed raw or very lightly seared and raw on the inside. 

The Tuna Crudo is how Italians do their raw tuna, we tried on a trip a few years ago and we were hooked! 

What is Tuna Crudo?

You can think of Tuna Crudo as an appetizer or amuse bouche if you will. It’s originally from Italy and it’s considered a high end dish in all restaurants. 

While this recipe is super simple to make and involves no cooking, it relies heavily on using quality ingredients. So when you’re making a crudo recipe, the first thing you need to do, is look for quality sushi grade tuna and quality olive oil (we use Mina the Moroccan single sourced olive oil).

The dish is mainly prepared by thinly slicing the tuna and cucumber. A bright orange and lemon vinaigrette is prepared and you can either drizzle it over the tuna or arrange the sliced seafood over it. And at that point you can simply garnish and it’s ready! Details on the recipe below.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Tuna. This is the key ingredient in the recipe and it MUST be quality sushi grade seafood. We use Saku tuna, similar to the one used in our Tuna Carpaccio.
• Citrus. A combination of orange and lemon, zests and juices is idea for the zest, tang and sweet dressing.
• Olive Oil. You’ll need quality olive oil for this as it’s a prominent flavor in the dressing. We use Mina, the Moroccan brand which is a single sourced olive oil al the way from Morocco and it’s SO GOOD!
• Vinegar. You can use white wine vinegar, we used white balsamic here. 
• Garnishes. Capers and fried garlic chips are our favorite garnishes. The capers happened to be from the same brand, Mina. The garlic chips you can use store bought or simply pan fry thinly sliced garlic until golden.
• Seasoning. Salt and pepper are the only spices you need, and chilli flakes if you’re looking for a kick.
• Cucumbers. These add a bit of freshness and juiciness to the dish, but you can skip it completely.

How to Make Tuna Crudo

Vinaigrette

1. Start by making the vinaigrette or sauce for the tuna crudo. Right into the serving plate, begin by zesting the orange and lemon, then juicing them into the plate.
   
2. Add the remaining ingredients like vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, capers and chilli flakes if using over the citruses. Whisk until smooth, and your sauce is then ready. Set aside in the fridge if serving later, or set aside while you prepare the dish. 

Tuna

1. Use a sharp knife and thinly slice the tuna fish. As with any  Carpaccio or recipe that involves thin slicing, a sharp knife is key. Alternatively you can flash freeze the fish for 45 minutes for easy slicing.
   
2. Arrange the sliced tuna and cucumber right ontop of the vinaigrette on the serving plate. You can alternate them or arrange them in any which way you prefer.

Garnish

1. We love a crisp topping to our tuna crudo recipe and we used garlic chips. You can most definitely use fried onions instead or store bought. We sliced garlic into thin slices, pan fried them in olive oil for just under 2 minutes until golden. Drained them and they look like this.
   
2. Finish the tuna crudo by sprinkling the garlic chips on top, some more olive oil and chilli flakes. It’s just as simple and amazing as it looks! 

Serve

There are so many ways to serve tuna crudo including jus as it is on it’s own. We love a crunchy ciabatta or Italian bread as shown above. Scoop some of that luscious succulent marinated fresh tuna, cucumber, capers and garlic chips over that bread and it’s heavenly! 

Tuna Crudo Recipe Tips

1. Use fresh and quality tuna for this recipe as it is consumed raw. More on raw seafood below. Let your fish monger know you’re using the tuna for a crudo recipe. 
2. If your knife is not super sharp or if you feel difficulty slicing the fish, freeze it first for 30 minutes. This flash freezing process will make slicing much easier for you.
3. Since the vinaigrette is also really few ingredients, make sure you use quality olive oil for it. The olive oil flavor will shine and so use a brand that you really like. We use Mina, which is a Moroccan olive oil and I’ve mentioned so much about it in this Olive Oil Cake.
4. If you can find Yuzu, which is a Japanese citrus fruit, it’s the ideal citrus to use here. Since it’s so hard to find fresh, we used a combo of orange and lemon. 
5. You can make the vinaigrette ahead of time (up to 3 days) and store it in the fridge.
6. The tuna is best served right away because the more it sits in the dressing, it will begin to cure. Similar to a Tuna Ceviche where the tuna is cured in lots of lime juice. 
7. Add on any greens you’d like, fennel, apples or any fresh fruit/veggie to the crudo. Just make sure it doesn’t get watery. 
8. Enjoy and serve right away, this is such an easy and tasty recipe!

What Types of Fish Can I use?

You can use so many different sushi grade fish for a crudo. You can make it with yellow fin, salmon, scallops and tuna! Make sure. you’re using Ahi Tuna, and we’re chosen saku, which is like a block inside the ahi tuna. So luscious!

How to Slice Fresh Tuna?

If your knife isn’t super sharp or have any fear of your knife skills, tuna can be quite challenging to slice thin. The fish when fresh is super soft and can make the knife slip and slide. In this case, flash freezing is the best way to go. You’ll place the fish in the freezer for 45 minutes on average. This will make the fish semi firm and much much easier to slice. 

How to Flavor Tuna Crudo

The vinaigrette is the best flavor here! Along with that we’ve added cucumber for freshness, capers for texture and fried garlic for a crisp finish. You can add greens like arugula, red onions, fried nuts, olives, scallions and more. We loved this version as it is 🙂 

Can anyone eat Raw fish?

Absolutely not! There’s always a risk when consuming raw fish especially if you’re under medication, have health conditions, pregnant or of a certain age. So while fresh quality seafood can be consumed raw for most healthy individuals, it’s not for everyone. There’s an article on Serious Eats about consuming raw fish and it’s great info. 

How to Prepare it cooked?

If you’re not comfortable with raw seafood, consider Tuna Ceviche where the fish is cured in lime for some time before eating. Also consider Ahi Tuna Salad , Tuna Wrap, Tuna Steak Recipe where the seafood is lightly seared. And finally, try a Beef Tataki method using tuna where the fish is also lightly seared.

Raw Seafood Recipes 

Tuna Tartare
Salmon Tartare
Poke Bowl
Sushi Burrito
Tuna Carpaccio
Sushi Bowl
Tuna Ceviche