I just got back from an amazing vacation to Maui last week. The trip was full of snorkeling, lounging by the pool, golfing, relaxing on the beach, cruises, luaus, and ahi, one of my favorite foods!

Ahi is the type of tuna you get in sushi, served raw, or as a seared steak in restaurants. Maui is famous for its delicious ahi poke, raw ahi diced into bite sized pieces and seasoned with different spices, onions, chile peppers, soy sauce, and sesame oil ginger. The local grocery store near our island condo had an assortment of ahi poke creations made with avocado, spicy tuna sauce, crab, and/or those tiny orange fish eggs you get on your California rolls.

To be money-savvy and to enjoy the breath-taking condo my aunt and uncle so graciously let us stay in, my boyfriend and I dined in for about half the nights of the trip. Ahi was the perfect meal. Accompanied with seaweed sheets, cucumber, seaweed salad, and edamame, it was healthy, quick, and so yummy.

I found this delicious ahi poke recipe so I can re-make our DIY sushi dinners on the mainland. I hope you enjoy trying it too. Don’t forget the chopstix!

Ingredients

2 pounds fresh or sashimi-grade Ahi tuna steaks, cut into bite-size pieces

1/2 cup soy sauce

3/4 cup chopped green onions (tops included)

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

1 to 2 chile peppers cored, seeded, and finely minced

Coarse salt to taste

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Boy choy or romaine lettuce leaves

Preparation

In a large bowl, combine tuna, soy sauce, green onions, sesame oil, ginger, chile peppers, salt, sesame seeds, and macadamia nuts; mix lightly. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

To serve, tear lettuce leaves into comfortable holding sizes and spoon approximately 3 tablespoons of poke onto each piece.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

 

-Emily Freeman