Yield: 10 Servings

Ingredients:

• 1 red onion, quartered and thinly sliced
• ½ cup lemon juice
• ½ cup lime juice
• 2 pounds cleaned hamachi, cut into very thin slices
• ¾ cup diced lemon, cut inot ¼ inch dice
• ¾ cup diced ruby red grapefruit
• ¼ cup canola oil
• ¼ cup pique (recipe follows)
• ¼ cup ponzu sauce
• ½ cup mint, julienned
• 3 scallions, green part only, cut on the diagonal into julinenne, 1-inch long
• 2 tablespoons togarashi (small, hot red Japanese chile)

Method:
Place the red onions in the lemon and lime juice just before service.

To serve, combine 3 ounces of the sliced hamachi, 4 to 5 slices of the red onion, ½ teaspoon of the lemon-lime juice, ½ teaspoon of the lemon dice, 1 teaspoon grapefruit dice, ¼ teaspoon each of canola oil, pique and ponzu, a pinch of mint and scallion julienne. Gently toss the ingredients to lightly marinate the hamachi. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

Scoop out the hamachi and garnish, leaving the liquid in the bowl and serve in a chilled round bowl. Pour 1 Tablespoon of the marinade over the hamachi. Season with a pinch of togarashi. Serve immediately.

Pique

Yield: 1 quart

Ingredients:

• 2 ½ cups water
• 6 ounces pineapple skin
• 2 ounces tiny hot green peppers
• 1 ounce tiny hot red pepper
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1 oregano sprig
• 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• Pinch fine sea salt
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Special equipment:
Heatproof jar with narrow mouth

Method:
Bring water and pineapple skin to a boil. Take off the heat and infuse the water for 5 minutes and strain.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Submerge a heatproof jar in the water to sterilize the jar. Remove and dry on a rack.

Make ½-inch slit in all the hot peppers near the stem. Add the peppers, garlic, oregano, peppercorns, sugar and salt to the jar. Cover with the pineapple-infused water. Add the olive oil. The olive oil should completely cover the pique, if it doesn’t add more to cover.

Leave the bottle open for a week on your countertop. Throughout the week, bubbles will rise to the top. After a week, the bubbles will have subsided, seal the bottle and refrigerate.

Wine Pairing:
New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc such as the Highfield Sauvignon Blanc 2003.