This Just In: Rice-Cracker Crusted Tuna

Sometimes you’re eating out and encounter a dish that’s just perfect: one that shows once again why chefs have a talent that the rest of us can only dream about. Jean-George Vongerichten is such a chef and Boston now enjoys his Market restaurant at the W Hotel (Tremont and Stuart Streets). I highly recommend dining there and suggest that, if you’re not more than two, you eat at the bar (first-come, first-served but seats are usually available).

The knock-out dish I’m referring to is the Rice-Cracker Crusted Tuna at $15.

Well. I had to go home and try to reproduce it. This was made easier with a Google search for the recipe which was right there along with a video of J-G demonstrating the process.

If you’d like to give it a try, my experience suggests that you should: a) crush the crackers into smaller pieces than J-G’s; b) be certain that the tuna is as cold as possible when you fry it; take it out of the refrigerator only briefly to coat it and return it if not cooking it immediately; c) reduce the amount of oil in the mayo to make it a bit thicker; and d) cut the log into at least 6 pieces: more is better!

Here’s what mine looked like: