Can You Really Make Vegetarian Tartare?

If you're familiar with tartare, you might automatically think of a perfectly circular stack of raw ingredients  — namely, raw beef, egg yolks, and aromatics like onion and garlic. In the world today, where just about any meat or animal-byproduct can be transformed into a vegan or vegetarian-friendly version, the same is definitely true for tartare. Beef tartare is classically prepared with raw steak as the bottom layer and an egg yolk on top. For a tartare with fish it tends to have more layers varying from fresh, raw vegetables to rich fat sources like avocado or egg yolk. 

These flavors and textures are amazingly emulated through vegetables and plant-based proteins. Whether you're a fan of beef or fish tartare, you'd be shocked at how close of a resemblance in flavor and appearance a plant-based tartare can get compared to its traditional counterpart — all due to the power of using certain veggies cooked in a specific way.

This dish may look and sound like some sort of intricate gourmet entrée found in a Michelin-star restaurant worth $200 dollars for the three whole bites you'll get out of it. But tartare (specifically plant-based tartare) is incredibly easy for anyone to make right at home. Whether you're looking to increase your veggie intake or you need an interesting and refreshing way to prep your usual week's worth of veggies, a plant-based tartare will surely make meal time something to look forward to.

The only special tool you'd need to create this dish is a 3" biscuit cutter in order to achieve the circular shape. Then you'll want to make sure you choose veggies (or even fruits) that are somewhat flexible raw or become flexible when cooked and chopped into cubes — both of these steps are necessary so the vegetables can easily conform to the round biscuit cutter. Across the internet, plant-based tartare recipes commonly feature tomatoes as the replacement for either the "steak" or the "salmon" component. In these recipes there's also sometimes a combination of both raw and cooked veggies utilized like roasted red bell peppers, beets and carrots. The rich, fatty layer can be created by using lightly seasoned avocado or some type of creamy element such as cream cheese or yogurt. An acidic flavor touch on top that also acts as a garnish is the finishing touch — capers work great here or even just a simple lemon wedge.

If cauliflower can somehow become pizza and cottage cheese can go viral on TikTok as ice cream, then tartare can certainly be made vegetarian or vegan — while being delicious too! Perhaps we just let our imaginations run wild and create plant-based tartare all using all veggies and fruits. Fruit tartare with breakfast anyone? Since this classic French dish is no longer limited as an exclusive steak or fish dish, the only thing really defining tartare is that signature circular shape that is only one 3" biscuit cutter away!