To Sear With Love - Part II

During my last visit to the doctor, my bloodwork revealed that some of my numbers were a bit high. Cholesterol was one of them. I knew automatically where that was coming from. RED MEAT. In my house my hubby is a steak and potatoes kinda guy. He can cook a mean steak. There is no resisting that ribeye. Tonight he brought home a flank steak topped with a roasted corn salsa. Wow. And he makes the most awesome shrimp scampi and also a Cajun style BBQ shrimp. Shrimp is HIGH in cholesterol. You have to really watch your shellfish intake. So I have increased my intake of fish instead. Now my chef is not a fish lover, but my son and I am. There are two fish that he does eat occasionally. One is Mahi Mahi and the other is Tuna. His fish has to be fresh and in fillet form. I haven't found a good fishmonger in the Charlotte area. If you know of one, I would love to know. But there are a few good sources. One for me is through the restaurant. Market value drives his ordering and what is fresh at the time. Unfortunately this source is not available to everybody. But there are Asian markets that have fish tanks with live fish in it. They are swimming around in the tanks. Alive is definitely fresh. The down side is you have to either take it home whole and clean it yourself (YEW), or pay an extra fee for it to be cleaned for you. If you love fishing and don't get squimish, this is the way to go. There is a big Asian market on the corner of Sugar Creek Road and Tryon St in the Charlotte area. Check for Asian markets in your area for fresh fish. Another source is Harris Teeter Supermarkets. They have really been improving their selection. The pictures you see here are tuna steaks we bought at Harris Teeter. There was a time that I would go see the fresh fish counter and balk at the prices. But then I remember that I have paid at least $25.00 an entree at fancy restaurants to have fresh fish. For 3 people that is $75.00. I still love going out to eat. Fancy restaurants don't have TV's playing football and I can get my husband's attention for a while. That alone is worth the money :-).
So if you buy 2 lbs of tuna at $10.99, you are still saving a bunch of money.
We love tuna blackened. I have previously posted the Horsey Sauce to accompany the fish, but my guy loves it just blackened, no sauce.
We serve the fish with rice and a side of either fresh steamed green beans or steamed asparagus. Here is the picture of our great Harris Teeter Tuna find.

They have the most wonderful red/pink color. They were cut 1 inch thick. He sprinkled the tuna steaks with blackening spice. He then took my new skillet and heated it up and then added 1/4 cup of olive oil. He added the tuna to the skillet to sear it.

Depending on the thickness of the tuna and how well you like it done determines the amount of time you should cook each side. We like it rare in the middle. My hubby calls it variables. It depends on the pan, how high the heat is, the thickness of the fish, etc. It can be exasperating cooking with him sometimes because he cooks with his eyes now. He can see how it is cooking and get it right. I still need instructions. But he says that for a 1" tuna steak, cook it for approximately 2 minutes each side. Isn't this a thing of beauty? I had a feast. We put on some jazz music on the ipod stand in the background, and a wonderful Pinot Grigio. The TV still had football on, but that's OK. I am blessed by God. Wonderful food on the table and my guys sitting by my side. That is what makes it taste even better. Love of God, love of family and love of food.
I hope you enjoy.

To Sear With Love

Her breasts slammed hard against the iron plated shield. Immediately the white hot heat was burning her skin. She couldn't do a thing to stop it. And just when she thought it was going to burn her beyond recognition, he turned her around and her back was against him. And again the burning began. Yet, her insides were melting. She felt a warmth run through her body and it made her feel wonderful.

How sexy is that for cooking a chicken breast. When my husband is cooking, I watch the way he massages any protein he is cooking with olive oil and seasonings. I even told him one time I wish I was a steak to get rubbed like that :-)

I wasn't the best cook of meats. Any steak or pork chop I cooked always turned out to be shoe leather. Tough and dry. If we were to eat red meat, I always asked my husband to cook it and I would watch him. Whether it was pork chops, tenderloin, or even tuna steak he would sear the meat. And the best part is that you sear the spices into the meat for great flavor.

So why sear. It seals in the juices. Plain and simple.

Sesame Encrusted Tuna Steak

2 tbsp of olive oil or roasted sesame oil if you want a more oriental flavor
One tuna steak per person.
Sesame seeds
Fresh coarse ground pepper
Kosher Salt
Teriyaki sauce or soy sauce

Take the tuna steaks and pat it dry. Sprinkle them with salt to taste.
Take the sesame seeds and put them on a flat dinner plate.
Grind the pepper on top of the sesame seeds.
Take a tuna and place it on the sesame seeds and press down. Try to coat the one side of the tuna. Turn over and do the same with the other side.

Have the pan heated up to a medium high heat. Add the oil and spread around.
Take the tuna steak and place it in the pan. Don't put more than 2 tuna steaks at once. You want the liquid to evaporate immediately. Cook the tuna a couple of minutes and flip. Cook the other side. The sesame seeds will have been encrusted and toasted into the tuna. Tuna is best rare inside. But if you liked it cooked all the way, have the oven preheated and place the tuna in the oven to finish cooking slowly.

To serve, drizzle with either the soy or teriyaki sauce. White rice and steamed snowpeas are great. Want it even healthier? Serve it with basmati brown rice. The nuttiness of the rice complements it wonderfully.

Here are a few tips:
I like to get the white and black sesame seeds and mix a couple of tablespoons together. I love the way it looks on the cooked tuna.

Try different salts. There are so many different salts that give subtle flavor changes. Pink salt, grey salt, fleur de sel. Some salts can run a bit expensive, but you can get the small packets for around $2.00 to sample them. World Market is a great place to buy little packets of salts and spices.

Tomorrow - Black as the Night