I got the idea for the grilling technique by watching the cooks in the open kitchen at Grillfish in Boston. This technique can be used for any fish steak and also for grilled scallops and shrimp, as in my recipe for Grilled Shrimp Pasta Alfredo.
| fresh,
never frozen, tuna steaks: 6-8 oz per person whole peppercorns butter, 1/4 stick per tuna steak 2 garlic cloves |
Peel and crush garlic, roughly chop, and add to butter in a pyrex measuring cup with a spout. Melt butter in microwave. Crush peppercorns with a mortar and pestle; coat all sides of tuna steaks with coarse pepper. Prepare grill. |
| grilling technique | Place tuna steaks on grill, directly over coals. Pour half of the melted garlic butter over the steaks. There will be a towering flame engulfing the fish as the butter burns off. Allow the flame to tower for 10-15 seconds, then cover the grill to quench the flames. Continue grilling for 2-3 minutes. Flip steaks and repeat the process with the remaining butter. Cover, grill for 2-3 minutes, then remove steaks. The tuna will be seared on the outside, medium rare when first cut into, and completely raw in the center. |