Beef Tataki, perfectly seared with a rare center then marinated in a sweet and savory sauce. Served cold and topped with grated daikon and radish sprouts. This delicious Japanese steak tataki appetizer is sure to be a crowd pleaser.
What is Japanese Beef Steak Tataki?
If you’re wondering what is tataki? In Japanese, it describes meat or fish that’s been seared on the outside and left rare in the middle.
Traditionally, Japanese beef tataki is quick seared using authentic Japanese wagyu, with the middle completely rare. It is then marinated and chilled until ready to serve.
Since we are using American beef for this recipe, this Japanese tataki style steak recipe is a little different in that it is quick seared on a cast iron, then put in the oven for a rare but not raw center.
If you prefer a raw center, you can skip the oven part of this recipe. Also, instead of marinating, the sauce is poured over the sliced beef.
Do you eat beef tataki raw?
Traditionally, beef tataki is eaten raw with a quick sear on the outside using Japanese wagyu. If you don’t prefer eating raw meat, follow this recipe to cook to your liking.
Is beef tataki served cold?
Beef tataki is usually served at room temperature or slightly chilled.
What ingredients do I need and how do you make beef tataki?
- Steak Fillets – New York strip steak, beef center cut beef fillet works best for this recipe.
- Salt – table salt or sea salt can be used.
- Neutral Cooking Oil – high temp neutral cooking oil such as vegetable oil, safflower oil, grapeseed oil.
- Daikon – Japanese radish, grated, sold in most Asian or Japanese supermarkets.
- Radish Sprouts – Daikon radish sprouts known as kawari in Japanese. You can usually find these in supermarkets.
- Dashi – a soup base broth made from boiling bonito flakes. This is the base responsible for giving Japanese cuisine its signature umami flavor.
- Soy Sauce – low sodium is preferred. For gluten free you can use tamari or coconut aminos.
- Sweetener – use your preferred sweetener or mirin.
- Garlic Cloves – grated using a hand grater or cheese grater.
- Japanese Sake – use Japanese cooking sake which is fairly inexpensive and can be found in most Asian supermarkets.
Sprinkle steak with salt (and pepper if desired). Sear all sides of the steak for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes on each side. Place in preheated oven and cook until desired doneness.
Top with grated daikon and radish sprouts then pour on sauce and serve. Can also garnish with chopped green onion if preferred.
Do you have a steak doneness chart for oven bake finish?
Here are the suggested oven times for steak doneness depending on preference.
These are times based on 1-inch thickness:
- Rare 120F/1-1.5 Minutes
- Medium-rare 130F/1.5-2.5 Minutes
- Medium 140F/2.5-3.5 Minutes
- Medium-well 150F/3.5-4.5 Minutes
- Well-done 160F/4.5-6 Minutes
Note – keep in mind the steak will continue to cook after you remove it from the oven, so I usually pull it out 5F before target temp.
What is the nutrition information for this tataki style steak recipe?
- 477 Calories
- 1g Carbohydrates
- 0g Fiber
- 46g Protein
- 32g Fat
- 138mg Cholesterol
- 660mg Sodium
- 627mg Potassium
- 22mg Calcium
- 84mg Iron
- 34ui Vitamin A
- 1mg Vitamin C
Looking for other steak recipes?
Now, let’s get making this Japanese Beef Steak Tataki recipe!
- Prepping Time 5M
- Cook Time 10M
- Total Time 15M
- Net Carb/Serv ~5g
- Servings 2
Ingredients
Steak
- 2 New York Steak Fillets
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tbsp Neutral Cooking Oil
- 2 tbsp Grated Daikon (Japanese radish)
- 1 oz Kawari Daikon (radish sprouts)
Tataki Sauce
Directions
1) Gather all the ingredients.
2) Preheat the oven to 425F.
3) Pat dry steak with a paper towel and generously sprinkle salt on both sides of the steak. Note – we recommend letting the steak sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes after seasoning for even cooking and letting the seasoning settle.
4) Grate garlic with a grater or a garlic press, grate daikon and set aside.
5) In a stove top pot, add Dashi, Soy Sauce, sweetener, grated garlic and Japanese sake. Bring sauce to a boil then remove from heat and place in refrigerator until ready to pour.
6) Add neutral oil into a cast iron pan on high heat until up to temp. Once up to heat, place the steak inside the pan and cook each side for 1.5-2 minutes to sear. Note – Don’t move or lift up the steak while searing.
7) After searing both sides, transfer the entire pan into the oven. Cook the steaks in the oven based on the doneness chart below. Note – times will vary depending on the exact cut and thickness.
- Rare 120F/1-1.5 Minutes
- Medium-rare 130F/1.5-2.5 Minutes (recommended)
- Medium 140F/2.5-3.5 Minutes
- Medium-well 150F/3.5-4.5 Minutes
- Well-done 160F/4.5-6 Minutes
8) Let the steak rest for 5 minutes then cut into slices.
9) Transfer sliced steak onto a serving plate, pour sauce over, and top with grated daikon and radish sprouts. Serve at either room tempeture or slightly chilled.
Hope you enjoy your Japanese Beef Steak Tataki!
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Japanese Beef Steak Tataki
Ingredients
Steak
- 2 New York Steak Fillets
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tbsp Neutral Cooking Oil
- 2 tbsp Grated Daikon Japanese radish
- 1 oz Kawari Daikon radish sprouts
Tataki Sauce
- 1/3 Cup Dashi
- 1 1/2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1 tsp Sweetener sugar alternative, sugar or preferred sweetener
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- 1 tbsp Japanese Sake
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Preheat the oven to 425F.
- Pat dry steak with a paper towel and generously sprinkle salt on both sides of the steak. Note - we recommend letting the steak sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes after seasoning for even cooking and letting the seasoning settle.
- Grate garlic with a grater or a garlic press, grate daikon and set aside.
- In a stove top pot, add Dashi, Soy Sauce, sweetener, grated garlic and Japanese sake. Bring sauce to a boil then remove from heat and place in refrigerator until ready to pour.
- Add neutral oil into a cast iron pan on high heat until up to temp. Once up to heat, place the steak inside the pan and cook each side for 1.5-2 minutes to sear. Note - Don't move or lift up the steak while searing.
- After searing both sides, transfer the entire pan into the oven. Cook the steaks in the oven based on the doneness chart above. Note - times will vary depending on the exact cut and thickness.
- Let the steak rest for 5 minutes then cut into slices.
- Transfer sliced steak onto a serving plate, pour sauce over, and top with grated daikon and radish sprouts. Serve at either room tempeture or slightly chilled.
Video
Nutrition
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