Seared Tuna with Cilantro Lime Glaze is best enjoyed rare and has an awesome sweet hot zesty sauce. Choose a nice thick fresh tuna steak with a deep red colour.
We have spent some time in Texas in the winter. Y’all! Love it! We like the area on the Gulf of Mexico so we have access to fresh fish and seafood. When we travel for longer visits I bring a few of my favourite kitchen items. I just happened to have a well seasoned cast iron pan which is perfect for Seared Tuna with Cilantro Lime Glaze because you need to sear the tuna on a high temperature without the tuna sticking to the pan.
Jump to RecipeI bought a beautiful fresh piece of tuna and patted it dry, then seasoned it with salt and pepper.
Isn’t this beautiful?
Then I made up a glaze. I mixed olive oil, the juice of 1 lime, honey, soy sauce, a big handful of chopped cilantro, a clove of garlic, ginger and 1 jalapeno pepper. Remember to taste the pepper and judge how much you need by how hot it is and your heat tolerance! And don’t touch your eye! You can add salt and pepper to taste, but the tuna is already seasoned so you don’t need much.
How do you sear a tuna steak?
Heat the cast iron pan to medium-high and drizzle a bit of heat safe oil such as vegetable or peanut. Or sesame oil which pairs well with the flavours and also has a high smoke point, meaning it can take the heat. Don’t use olive oil. When the pan is hot, sear the tuna for only about 2 minutes, then turn and sear the other side.
Make sure the pan is hot when you add the tuna or you won’t get that outer crust with a rare centre. After a few minutes on the second side, pour the glaze over the tuna. Once the glaze starts to caramelize, remove the pan from the heat and spoon the glaze over top a few times.
Mmmmmm…….
Seared Tuna with Cilantro Lime Glaze is best enjoyed super rare!
If you aren’t comfortable with rare tuna, you can cook it longer. But trust me, this way is best!
If you love rare tuna, Salad Nicoise will be right up your alley!
See above, we ate it right out of the pan! We didn’t even wait to put it on a plate!
Here’s the recipe:
Seared Tuna with Cilantro Lime Glaze
Ingredients
- 1 large thick fresh tuna steak or 2 smaller steaks
- 1 tsp sesame oil or other heat safe oil such as peanut, veg etc
- salt and pepper
Glaze
- 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tsp ginger, minced
- 1 jalapeno, finely minced remove seeds for less heat
- 1 handful chopped fresh cilantro plus more for garnish
Instructions
- Pat tuna dry on both sides. Season with salt and pepper.
- Combine all glaze ingredients. Add salt if necessary, depending on sodium content in soy sauce.
- Heat heavy skillet or cast iron pan to medium-high. Add oil. Place tuna in hot pan and sear for about 2 minutes.
- Turn tuna. Sear other side for 2 minutes. Add glaze and spoon over top as glaze caramelizes in the pan.
- Remove from heat and let rest. Add more fresh cilantro if desired.
OMG! Fabulous!
I’m glad you loved it! Now I’m craving tuna steak!
Perfect!I served this with baked sweet potato and salad, fast, easy and delicious
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Love your choice of sides!