CANNED TUNA “RILLETTES”

 Rillettes are traditionally made by combining cooked pork with rendered lard and salt. This version is a riff on the classic, with a nod to the Italian version, “Tonno sott’Olio Mantecato”. This simple spread is a great alternative to your standard tuna salad. It’s delicious with almost any canned tuna but, like most recipes, if you use a high-quality canned tuna it becomes a total show-stopper. It’s rich and very savory, so a simple salad of fine herbs dressed in lemon and olive oil makes the perfect accompaniment to this savory spread.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 can of tuna
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) of butter, room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon whole-grain dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon flake sea salt, or substitute 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, fresh-cracked and course ground
• 1 teaspoon capers
• 1 small shallot, finely chopped
• A pinch of red pepper flakes and high-quality olive oil (to garnish)

DIRECTIONS

1. Drain the liquid from the canned tuna and pulse in a food processor until it is thoroughly shredded and has the consistency of course sand.

2. After you process the tuna, add the room temperature butter, Dijon, salt and pepper, and pulse until smooth.

3. Add the capers and shallot and pulse until combined.

4. Serve garnished with oil and pepper flakes, with crostini or grilled country loaf.