Hello and welcome back to The Stone Soup Cook–so glad you’re here!
Today, I’m going to be finishing up my dive into the world of grilled meats–actually grilled proteins–today I’m highlighting grilled ahi tuna.
The first time Mr. Stone Soup and I encountered ahi tuna was at the restaurant at Chandon Winery in Yountville, California. It was a cold, rainy and generally miserable day outside, but it was warm, cozy and inviting to sit near the fire inside the restaurant. This was probably 30 years ago and Mr. Stone Soup and I were taking a few days off from our demanding Silicon Valley jobs to enjoy some good wine and food up in the Napa Valley. For many years after that meal, we considered it to be the best overall dining experience we’d ever had. In many ways, it still is.
The special of the day was grilled ahi tuna, served with mashed potatoes and fresh asparagus. The tuna was served very rare, which gave us pause, but our very kind and professional waitperson assured us it was not only safe to eat, but also the way the chef preferred to serve and prepare it to really showcase the nuanced flavors of the tuna. She explained that the chef felt that the less he did with it, the better the fish would be. This was one of our earliest experiences with fine California Cuisine. I’m awfully glad we didn’t send it back for more processing!! The tuna was firm, flavorful and wonderfully moist. The mashed potatoes were comforting and the asparagus were freshly harvested. The best part of the meal was that it was something I was able to re-create at home time and time again. It’s a meal that we still enjoy today.
Tuna is a firm fish that lends itself to a good sear or to a hot grill. The most important things are to buy sushi-grade tuna and to NOT overcook it. It’s a very lean fish that will dry out in a flash if you overcook it. As with most meats, I do brine my tuna before I grill it. Fish needs only a short time in the brine–30-40 minutes, depending on the firmness of the fish–and tuna needs only 4-5 minutes on a very hot grill. I usually slap it on a grill that I’ve heated up to 500* (you should hear it sizzle when it hits the grill), turn it after one minute, turn it another two times, for a total of four minutes cook time. The exterior will be gray, but the interior will still be that gorgeous tuna-red color that you see on the top steak:
It’s hard to pin down a temperature for a tuna filet–I’ve seen anywhere from 90*-145*. If you cook it to 145*, it’ll be more like what you’d get in a can of tuna. But really, tuna should be served rare, which is why it’s important to buy sushi-grade tuna.
I’m sure we had merlot with our tuna because we had just discovered this under-appreciated wine, but grilled tuna will also pair well with pinot noir or sauvignon blanc.
Tune in next week when I’ll be starting my new feature: What’s For Dinner Tonight In My California Kitchen?
Until then,
Peace, love and good food,
Keri
