Pacific Spiced Tuna Recipes

MOROCCAN-SPICED TUNA

Steps:

• Put the coriander, garlic, spices and lemon juice into a blender and blitz to a purée. With the motor running, slowly add the olive oil until you get a smooth, thick sauce. Set aside.
• Sit the tuna steaks in a non-metallic dish and cover with two-thirds of the sauce. Cover with cling film, then leave to marinate in the fridge for about 20 mins (or for up to 4hrs).
• Heat a griddle pan or grill. Shake off any excess marinade, season the tuna steaks, then cook for 2-4 mins, depending on thickness for medium rare, turning once (cook 2 mins more for well done). Drizzle over the remaining sauce paste to finish. Try serving with new potatoes; for a Moroccan twist, toss melted butter, harissa spice mix and chopped coriander leaves through the potatoes.

SPICY TUNA TOSTADA

Steps:

• For the tostadas: Preheat the vegetable oil in a deep-fryer to 350 degrees F. Line a plate with paper towels.
• Fry the tortillas flat until completely crisp, about 1 minute. Drain on the paper towels.
• Cut the tuna into 1/4-inch cubes, discarding large pieces of sinew, and place in a small bowl. Dress the tuna with 2 tablespoons olive oil and some salt and pepper and mix well. Add the shallot. Drain the juice from the lime supremes and add to the radishes in a small bowl. Add the supremes to the tuna mixture and mix well. Chop half the cilantro and add to tuna mixture. Add the remaining tablespoon olive oil to the radishes and season with salt and pepper.
• For the chipotle aioli: Place the chipotles, mayo and lime juice in a mortar and pestle and blend until smooth. Slowly add the oil and season with salt. Spoon into a bowl.
• To compose, spread about 1 1/2 tablespoons chipotle aioli on each of the tostada rounds. Place the tuna mixture on top of the chipotle aioli. Top the tuna with the radish mixture and the remaining cilantro leaves.

SPICY SEARED TUNA WITH SESAME VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Melt the butter over low-heat, stir in the ginger root and remove from the heat. Allow the mixture to infuse for 2 to 3 hours or overnight for the flavor to develop.
• In a small saucepan, heat the vinegar and whisk in the sugar until it is dissolved. Remove from the heat and all to cool. Stir in the salt, pepper, sesame seeds, and soy sauce, then whisk in the sesame and vegetable oils until the mixture is completely emulsified.
• Reheat the butter and ginger root infusion until it is soft enough to spread easily. Brush each sheet of aluminum foil with some of this mixture, and sprinkle with a little salt and white pepper. With a very sharp knife, slice the tuna about 3/8 inch thick against the grain and lay 2 slices in a single layer on each piece of foil. Preheat a grill, griddle, or large heavy skillet to very high heat.
• Toss the greens with just enough vinaigrette to coat all the leaves and reserve the remaining vinaigrette for another use. Mound an equal quantity of the salad on each of 6 serving plates.
• Transfer the sheets of foil to the hot grill and cook for about 30 seconds, or until the tuna is seared on one side and still raw on the other. Immediately transfer the tuna slices, raw side up, to the plates and drape them loosely around the edges of the salad. Garnish with the chives and the shiitake caps, if desired, and serve immediately.
• In a large heavy saucepan, heat the sesame oil over medium heat. Add the garlic, ginger root, and mushrooms and saute for 3 minutes, or until the mushrooms are just seared and still dry. Deglaze the pan with the vinegar and reduce over medium-high heat until almost no liquid remains. Stir in the sambal olek and salt and remove from the heat. Add the vinaigrette and stir to mix. Set aside and allow to marinate for at least 6 hours. The mushrooms can be kept covered in the refrigerator, for up to 4 days.

SPICY TUNA PUTTANESCA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 12 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup pasta water.
• While pasta cooks, heat olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Once oil is shimmering, add onion, Kalamata olives, capers, anchovies, and garlic. Cook and stir until onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, white wine, and red pepper flakes. Stir to incorporate.
• Nestle the tuna steaks into the sauce, cover, and cook until the tuna flakes easily, about 10 minutes. If sauce is too thick, add in the reserved pasta water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Add in the Italian seasoning.
• Serve tuna and sauce on top of cooked pasta. Garnish with basil if desired.

SPICED TUNA WITH PINEAPPLE GLAZE

Steps:

• Combine the spice rub ingredients in a heavy skillet, mix well, and heat over medium heat, stirring frequently, until spices begin to smoke and become fragrant.
• Remove from heat, cool, place in a coffee grinder and grind until fine.
• To make the glaze, combine the pineapple juice, vinegar, ginger, soy sauce, and brown sugar in a small saucepan.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer until mixture is reduced by half, about 30 minutes.
• Add the catsup and cook an additional 5 minutes.
• Remove from heat, add lime juice, cilantro and white pepper; mix well and set aside.
• Rub the tuna steaks on all sides with spice mixture.
• Grill the tuna over a medium fire for 4 to 5 minutes per side, or until center is still slightly pink for medium-rare.
• Spread pineapple slices lightly with glaze and grill for 2 to 3 minutes per side.
• Serve grilled steaks on top of jasmine rice with glaze spooned over, top with a slice of pineapple.

FIVE-SPICE TUNA

Steps:

• In a large bowl of shallow dish, combine the first six ingredients. Add tuna and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 15 minutes., Drain tuna, discarding marinade. Place tuna on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Broil 3-4 in. from the heat until fish flakes easily with a fork, 3-5 minutes on each side .

KEN HOM'S SEARED TUNA WITH SPICED CONFETTI

Steps:

• In a small bowl combine the soy sauce, rice wine, sesame oil and one-fourth teaspoon pepper. Place the tuna on a plate, spread the mixture evenly over the tuna on both sides, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for two hours.
• Heat a wok or a heavy skillet. Add the olive oil, then the scallions, garlic, ginger, shallots and chili. Stir- fry for one minute, then add the carrots, zucchini and red pepper. Stir-fry another minute, then add the cumin, salt, sugar and remaining black pepper. Stir-fry another minute, remove from heat, stir in the fresh coriander and set aside.
• Just before serving remove the tuna from the marinade, reserving the marinade. Pat the tuna dry on paper towels.
• Clean the wok or skillet and reheat it over high heat. Add the peanut oil. Add the tuna; reduce the heat to medium and sear on one side. Turn the tuna over and sear on the other side, long enough to brown the outside but keeping the inside rare. Remove the tuna to warm plates. Alternatively, the tuna can be brushed with the oil and grilled or broiled.
• Pour the marinade into the wok or skillet and bring to a boil. Pour the heated marinade over the tuna and spoon the vegetable mixture on top. Serve at once.

PACIFIC SPICED TUNA

Steps:

• Place cumin,coriander,cayenne,oil,salt,pepper,lime juice,zest, ginger and green onions in a shallow dish.
• Add tuna fillets, turn to coat, marinate 1-2 hours.
• Spray outdoor grill with non-stick spray, heat to hot; grill tuna 3/5minutes on each side.