Roy Yamaguchi is a Japanese-American, James Beard award winning celebrity chef. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America in New York, Roy moved to California and worked in many European-styled restaurants. In 1988, he moved to his father’s birthplace of Hawaii and opened his first Roy’s restaurant. Roy is also a television personality, having hosted 6 seasons of the PBS series, Hawaii Cooks with Roy Yamaguchi.
Roy’s refers to his style of cooking as Hawaiian Fusion. It is based on fresh, local ingredients-especially seafood-bold Asian spices and European influenced sauces. His most popular and iconic appetizer, the original Signature Blackened Ahi Tuna served with both Soy-Mustard and Beurre Blanc sauces, typifies this Hawaiian Fusion style of cooking. It has been on his menus since the very beginning.
I had the great pleasure of meeting Roy Yamaguchi in 2012, when I was consulting at his Sarasota, Florida Roy’s location. He cooked with my husband, a James Beard nominee himself. Afterwards we sat for dinner and I found him to be a very kind and polite person. His talent is unquestionable but he also has a very genuine personality, too.
Roy Yamaguchi’s inspired Hawaiian Fusion restaurants have been defining Pacific Rim dining since 1988.
Ingredients
- 2 8-oz. pieces of fresh Ahi tuna, 2” thick
- Black sesame seeds
- Pickled ginger, for serving
- Wakame salad, for serving
- Blackening Seasoning:
- 1 ½ TBL paprika (not smoked)
- ½ TBL cayenne pepper
- ½ TBL chili powder
- ¼ TBL white pepper
- Soy Mustard Sauce:
- ¼ cup Coleman’s mustard powder
- 2 TBL hot water
- 2 TBL rice vinegar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- Beurre Blanc Sauce:
- 1 TBL shallot, minced
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 2 tsp. white wine vinegar
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
- 2 TBL heavy cream
- 1 stick cold butter, cubed
- ¼ tsp. Kosher salt
- Dash white pepper
Instructions
Soy Mustard Instructions:
Place all soy mustard sauce ingredients in a lidded container and shake well to mix, shaking out any lumps from the dry mustard.
Beurre Blanc Instructions:
In a small saucepan, over a med-high heat, bring the shallot, white wine, vinegar, and lemon juice to a simmer. Whisk in the heavy cream and butter, in pieces, until the butter is melted. Add the salt and white pepper. Reduce the Beurre Blanc on low heat, by ½. Once the sauce has reduced, keep the Beurre Blanc on the warm setting of the stovetop.
Instructions:
Combine all blackening seasonings and mix well. Completely coat each piece of tuna in the blackening seasoning, including the sides. In a non-stick skillet, on the highest heat setting for searing, add 2 TBL of EVOO. Once the EVOO shimmers, sear the tuna one piece at a time. Sear the tuna on all sides. Sear for 15-30 seconds per side for rare tuna and 1 minute per side for med-rare tuna.
To Plate:
Drizzle the Beurre Blanc on a plate. Drizzle the soy mustard sauce on the plate. Thinly slice the tuna and places the tuna slices on the plate. Sprinkle with black sesame seeds and garnish with pickled ginger and wakame salad.
Serve with Roy’s Restaurant Beef Short Ribs and Benihana’s Ginger Salad and Enjoy!
FULL VIDEO TUTORIAL
