Make your own poke at home
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
The simpler the better when it comes to home-made poke. Photo: Mitchell Byars/Axios Boulder
With National Poke Day this Sunday, there's no reason you have to go out to celebrate.
Context: Poke is a traditional Hawaiian dish of raw, cubed fish that's marinated with various toppings and seasonings like seaweed and onions.
- The name "poke" means "to slice" or "to cut" in Hawaiian, referring to how the fish is prepared.
- While the most common version usually involves raw tuna, variations use everything from marlin and salmon to shrimp or octopus.
Diving in: If you want to learn how to make your own poke, I've got a basic family recipe for you here.
What you need: Obviously, the main ingredient is the fish. The fresher the better, but that's easier said than done in some parts of the country. If you can't find tuna, marlin and salmon are good alternatives. It goes without saying, this is not the time for catfish.
- Soy sauce
- Sweet onion
- Course sea salt
- Oyster sauce. This adds flavor but mostly to add some "sticky" so you don't just end up with onion soy sauce soup.
- Sesame seed oil
- Sesame seeds or green onions
Preperation: Good news, no cooking involved! The bad news, making poke is more art than a science. Everything from the type of fish to the brand of soy sauce can yield different flavor. So I will give you measurements, but in truth, I just make it to taste.
- Dice fish into 1/2-inch cubes, add a bit sea salt to bring out color and remove some of the strong fish odor and taste.
- Chop about a third of an onion, but don't dice it too finely.
- Mix fish and onions and add sauces. For a pound of tuna, I usually use 1/3 cup of soy sauce, one tablespoon of oyster sauce and two teaspoons of sesame oil. Alter to taste.
- Top with sesame seeds or green onions.
- Let the mixture sit for at least an hour or two in the fridge to let everything soak.
Pro tip: Obviously, you can add other ingredients. But if you ask Hawaiian poke masters, they will tell you the mistake many mainland poke places make is failling to let the fish be the star.