Top chefs agree. Here’s a recipe from one of our favorite Top Chef finalists, Fabio Viviani.

Among his other pursuits, Chef Fabio serves as the brand ambassador for Bertolli Olive Oil (which happens to be the world’s number one brand). He is also the host of the award-winning web series “Chow Ciao!” on Yahoo!

We can’t get to Fabio’s Firenze Osteria in North Hollywood, California; but we can whip up his recipe.

Fabio serves the beet tartare with lobster tail poached in olive oil. You can substitute shrimp for the lobster; or serve the tartare as a side or a first course, presented with whatever you like.

Prep and cooking time: 45 minutes.
 
 
RECIPE: LOBSTER WITH BEET TARTARE

Ingredients For 1 Serving

 
Preparation

1. PREPARE the beets: Dice the beets into small pieces so they resemble chopped tuna. Place in a bowl and add the shallots, orange zest, mustard, vinegar and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

2. PREPARE the lobster: Place the olive oil, garlic, lemon zest and 2 sprigs of thyme into a small pot and place over low heat. Once the garlic starts to sizzle, add the lobster.

3. COOK for about 5 minutes or until the lobster is cooked through (but not overcooked—it will be tough and dry). Remove and set aside.

4. PLATE: Add the diced beets to a mold or ramekin; place on the plate with the lobster and garnish as desired.
 
 
WHAT IS TARTARE?

Steak tartare, or tartar steak, is a meat dish* named after the legend that Tartars† did not have time to cook their meat, so ate it raw on horseback.

Steak tartare is made from finely chopped or minced raw beef or horse meat, plus seasonings. With its growing popularity over the last 30 or so years, other recipes have adopted the name. Salmon tartare, tuna tartare, tomato tartare, carrot tartare and strawberry tartare are some examples.

[1] Beet tartare (under the edible flower) and poached lobster (photo © Fabio Viviani).

[2] If you don’t like lobster, scallops are equally delicious and more budget-friendly (photo © Iliane Solenyi | Panther Media).

[3] We love fresh beets, but they are one of the rare vegetables where the precooked, plastic-packaged or canned versions taste just as good (photo © Good Eggs).

*The typical recipe is round raw beef mixed with onions, capers, Worcestershire sauce and a raw egg, served with toast points. A variation, tartare aller-retour, is tartare patty lightly seared on one side. Steak tartare is often served with frites (French fries). In Belgium, the dish is known as filet américain. American? What happened to the Tartars?

†The Tartars, also spelled Tatars, are an ethnic group in Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. Most Tatars live in the Russian Federation. To Americans, the most famous of the Tartars is Genghis Khan, whose troops invaded Europe in the 13th century. The most famous Tartar-American is the actor Charles Bronson.