Grill tuna for a quick dinner - JSOnline

http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Grill+tuna+...

SAVE THIS | EMAIL THIS | Close

Home Features Food and Cooking Food and Cooking Bio

Sandy D'Amato | The Kitchen Technician Grill tuna for a quick dinner
Make sauce ahead for a go-to menu that beats to-go
Posted: Aug. 24, 2008 When youre responsible for dinner after a hard days work, do you go straight to the microwave or quickly grab the blue mac and cheese box? Or do you just chuck it and use the phone for delivery? When I cook at home for Angie and myself in the summer, I have three criteria for a good dinner. First, it should be somewhat healthy, second it should be from the grill and third, and most important, it must be fast. We dont plan ahead for dinner on a nightly basis, so to make seemingly semi-complicated dishes easy and fast I use the freezer to keep a small arsenal of products such as bacon, peas, various soups (donated to the cause by my mother-in-law, Felicia), and small containers of stocks and sauces that can be defrosted at a moments notice to add a bit of depth and flair to simple fare. One of my favorite go-to dinners is a grilled protein with grilled vegetables or greens and a tasty sauce or vinaigrette to bring it all together. One of the easiest fish to grill is tuna. With proper prep, it wont stick to the grill, and if you happen to undercook it a bit, thats OK. You can either eat it that way or easily pop it back on the grill. Escarole is a relatively inexpensive, underused green that has enough of a textural backbone to grill beautifully and still retain a sumptuous crunch. The key to today's recipe is to make the Sweet Garlic Sauce ahead. I make one larger batch and freeze it in small zipper-lock bag portions to serve two. It can be taken out of the freezer and reheated in a matter of minutes while the tuna and escarole are grilling. For a perfectly grilled tuna, you should have it cut to about 1-inch thickness. The grill should be heated to

1 of 3

12/3/2008 2:14 PM

Grill tuna for a quick dinner - JSOnline

http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Grill+tuna+...

about a three-second fire (when you can hold your hand over the fire for only three seconds before quickly removing it). The grill then should be well-brushed, quickly cleaned and oiled with a thick bit of paper towel dipped into a neutral-tasting oil. Season and lightly oil the tuna and place a wooden skewer though the exact middle of the tuna horizontally, then grill it about three minutes per side until medium-rare to medium. Pull out the skewer, place it under your bottom lip and it should be just room temperature. Grill the escarole before the tuna so it is ready before the tuna comes off. Drizzle with a bit of the Sweet Garlic Sauce and you'll have a restaurant-quality dinner in the time it takes to make that box of mac and cheese. And I can tell you from experience, your stomach will thank you later for your wise choice.

Recipes: Grilled Tuna with Escarole and Sweet Garlic Sauce

Makes 2 servings 10 large cloves garlic (unpeeled) (divided) 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (divided) 2 tablespoons chopped shallot 1 cup dry white wine cup veal or beef stock 1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 cup vegetable or chicken stock Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 1 small head escarole, quartered with core intact, cleaned and dried 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 2 pieces (7 to 8 ounces each) boneless fresh tuna (about 1 inch thick) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss 6 cloves of the unpeeled garlic with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Set in a small metal pan and roast in preheated oven 15 minutes. Peel remaining 4 cloves of garlic and blanch in boiling water 5 minutes, drain, cut in half lengthwise and then lightly saut in 2 teaspoons oil until light golden. Set all the garlic aside. For sauce, in medium saut pan, heat 1 teaspoon oil. Add shallots and saut about 10 seconds. Add wine and reduce to cup, 5 to 7 minutes. Mix veal or beef stock with tomato paste and add to wine mixture along with vegetable or chicken stock. Squeeze in reserved roasted garlic, discarding the peels. Cook over medium heat until reduced to to cup, about 15 minutes. Watch closely as the 15-minute mark approaches. Add salt and pepper and reserve.

2 of 3

12/3/2008 2:14 PM

Grill tuna for a quick dinner - JSOnline

http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Grill+tuna+...

Get a grill very hot (you should be able to hold your hand only 3 seconds over the fire before removing). Toss escarole with balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon oil and salt and pepper to taste. Grill 2 to 3 minutes, turning once, until crisp-tender and slightly charred. Brush tuna with remaining 2 tablespoons oil, season lightly with salt and pepper and grill 2 to 3 minutes per side until center is pink or to desired doneness. Divide escarole and then tuna between two plates. Place reserved sauted garlic cloves over tuna and strain sauce through a medium strainer over tuna. Sanford S " andy"D'Amato, chef/co-owner of Sanford Restaurant, 1547 N. Jackson St., Coquette Cafe, 316 N. Milwaukee St., and Harlequin Bakery, is a James Beard Award winner. For more information, visit www.sanfordrestaurant.com. Archives When in Rome, do as the taste buds would Cranberry tart brings meal to a sweet close Hazelnuts roasting set the heart afire Hearts melt when cheese meets bread Squash dumplings fit the season and senses Bikers in Italy take to wheels of cheese 2,000 filets gave me the willies Follow taste buds, not chef Fishing for fond memories Shrimp dish good enough for jumbo billboard Right ranch can make salad, day perfect Dramatic service won't upstage veal piccata Yes, folks in Milwaukee want to eat good food Ring dinner bell for Asian chops Guess who wins in showdown between chef and popular dish? Getting to the root of a good lunch in N.Y. Scratching that 11-year itch When it comes to chowder, I'll take Manhattan Cool gazpacho stretches out summer Young chef changes rooms and his perspective

Find this article at:

http://www.jsonline.com/features/food/32613514.html SAVE THIS | EMAIL THIS | Close Check the box to include the list of links referenced in the article.

3 of 3

12/3/2008 2:14 PM