Recipes: Seafood Monica, Tuna Tartare with Spicy Sesame Dressing

It's a 2-for-1 seafood special! We have a new twist on a New Orleans staple plus we show you how to plate up the way the pros do. These recipes and techniques were shared by Chef Jon Walker from The Tides Seafood Market & Provisions in Safety Harbor- but you may also know him from TikTok - where his seafood videos have had over a million likes!

Click here for a printer-friendly version of the recipes below. If you make either of them, let us know how they turn out! 

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Watch the recipes again any time by clicking on the video at the top of the page, and see more Dinner DeeAs every weekday at 1pm ET on FOX13. 

Seafood Monica

Ingredients 

Seafood Monica is a take on Crawfish Monica, a New Orleans Jazz Fest staple. Chef Jon's take has crawfish and shrimp in a nice light parmesan cream.

• 1 lb fresh fusilli pasta
• 3 oz avocado oil
• ½ cup minced garlic
• 1 lb Louisiana crawfish tail meat
• 1 lb small Gulf shrimp (pink shrimp are the best to use, 60-80 count, using smaller shrimp is great because there are more of them in the pasta, giving you shrimp in every bite!)
• 1 pint white wine
• 1 qt heavy cream
• ½ lb butter
• 2 lb Parmesan, grated
• ½ cup chives or green onions, sliced paper thin

Directions

1. In stock pot bring water to boil to cook pasta. Cook fusilli to desired doneness - I prefer my pasta cooked through but not soggy or soft
2. In large pot add oil and garlic, cook garlic half way then add ¼ lb crawfish & ¼ lb shrimp. Let cook 3–4 minutes.
3. Add wine & reduce by half.
4. Add cream & bring to boil
5. Simmer 15 minutes, adding butter slowly. Then simmer another 15 minutes after all butter has been worked in.
6. Pour mixture into blender or use immersion blender, sauce should be smooth at this point.
7. Put pot that pasta was cooked in back on heat with 1 oz oil & add shrimp and crawfish when hot.
8. When shrimp is half way cooked add hot sauce, parmesan & pasta - mix well.
9. Just before plating add green onions or chives then garnish with grated parmesan & chives.

Tuna Tartare

Ingredients 

• 4 oz fresh tuna 
• 2 oz spicy sesame dressing to taste (see video and recipe below)
• salt & pepper, to taste
• 1 avocado
• cucumber, sliced thinly
• pickled red onions, to taste (see recipe below)
• sprig of wasabi or arugula microgreens, for garnish
• potato chips, crackers or another dipping vehicle, to serve

Directions

1. Mince tuna, cut into very small pieces.
2. Combine sesame dressing and tuna in bowl and mix thoroughly.
3. Season with salt & pepper.
4. Place ring mold (biscuit cutter would work too) on plate you intend to use for serving.
5. Put tuna on bottom of mold.
6. In bowl add avocado, salt & pepper, mash into small pieces then place on top of tuna in mold.
7. Add sliced cucumbers on top of tuna/avocado mixture.
8. Place pickled red onions on top of cucumber then slowly lift mold to reveal stack of tuna, avocado, cucumber & pickled red onion.
9. Garnish with sprig of wasabi or arugula microgreens.
10. Serve with potato chips (preferred), crackers or another dipping vehicle of your choice.

Spicy Sesame Dressing

Ingredients

• 2 whole green onions, roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp garlic, minced
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp sriracha
• ¼ cup rice vinegar
• salt & pepper, to taste
• ¼ cup sesame oil
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Directions

1. Put all ingredients except olive & sesame oil into food processor or blender.
2. Puree 2 minutes until smooth.
3. Combine olive & sesame oil and slowly add to food processor until completely incorporated & smooth.

Pickled Red Onions

Prepare this the night before!

Ingredients

• 1 large red onion, julienned
• 2 limes

Directions

1. Put julienned red onion in non-reactive container.
2. Cover with juice of two limes.
3. Cover & let sit overnight.

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