Calories in Tuna Tartare

I am obsessed with tuna tartare.  If it is on the menu, it’s pretty much a sure bet that I will order it! Any thoughts of mercury poisoning go out the window. I am on a quest to find the perfect tuna tartare. I had always assumed it was fairly low in calories, however recently I’ve realized that it’s not quite as low as I thought …

What is in tuna tartare?
Obviously you start with raw tuna. The additional ingredients will depend upon who makes it. Popular ingredients a combination of the following: ginger, soy sauce, mayonnaise, avocado, citrus, sesame oil, wasabi, capers, pine nuts, pesto, shallots, etc.  Also, many tartares come with bread, toast or chips. (pic taken at Nice Matin in NYC with Paula, Debbie, Laurie and me. Of course, I’ve ordered tuna tartare)

Estimated calorie content of 2 tuna tartare dishes
 Some tartares are quite dry, whereas others have higher calorie ingredients added in (i.e. oil or mayo). I would highly doubt that any tartare is made without added oil …  however question is – how much? So the caloric content of tuna tartare can very widely.

Accademia d’vino
I got this as a take out order so I could weigh the ingredients in the privacy of my home. Weighing food in a restaurant is bit too much …
– 4 oz of tuna (included some pine nuts and other flavorings)
– 1 1/4 oz toasted bread that was slightly oily (will estimate 1 tsp oil on bread)
– 2  T.of oil pesto sauce was drizzled on the mound of tuna as well as over the plate   (see pic)
Estimated caloric value: 550

Nice Matin
These ingredients are estimations as I didn’t weigh the food. But I’m pretty good at eyeballing portions.
~ 4 oz tuna topped with avocado
– 2  large potato chips
– citrus tasting marinade (actually quite good … but a lot of oil) over the tuna and on the plate (a lot of  it)
Estimated caloric value: 580

I also looked on line for calories in tuna tartare to compare my findings. The calorie information  from recipe zarr regarding the Barefoot Contessa tuna tartare is based on a 2.3  oz portion. This would only be half a appetizer size portion in a restaurant, so I doubled the nutrition info. Caloric value for Barefoot Contessa tuna tartare 4.6 oz was 260 calories. This recipe was obviously low in fat and did not include any bread or chips.

Tuna tartare slimming tips:
Tuna tartare can be higher in calories than I orginally thought, so if you are trying to watch your weight, try these suggestions:

– Split  it with a friend. Then split an entree as well.
– Have it for your meal … along with a glass of wine of course!
– If you know it c0mes with a dressing on it, you might want to ask for it on the side (I do this at Accademia d’vino)

*word of warning … raw fish can pose a risk of being contaminated and should not be consumed by pregnant women, children or people with compromised immune systems. If you decide to consume it, make sure you get it from a reputable restaurant.