With Seared Tuna and Cucumber-Dill Yogurt Sauce
Serves 6 One of the easiest grains to prepare is bulgur wheat. The beauty of bulgur is that unlike other grains that require cooking with heat, bulgur is actually half cooked and then dried again, where all you really need to do is soak it for half a day or overnight to yield it ready to serve. Soak, drain and dress it and you have a super healthy addition to any meal. Here, lots of chopped parsley, mint, tomato, onion, cucumber and lemon bring a healthy and vibrant burst of refreshing flavors to the grains. Enjoy as is or as a salad-like bed for seared or grilled proteins such as chicken, lamb or in this case, tuna loin. A raita-like sauce rounds it all out.Ingredients
- 2 cups Bulgur Wheat, already soaked and drained, according to package instructions
- 1/2 cup Parsley, fresh, chopped, plus sprigs for garnish
- 1/4 cup Mint, fresh, chopped
- 1/4 cup Cilantro, fresh, chopped
- 1/4 cup Scallions, fresh, finely sliced
- 1/4 cup Red Onion, small dice
- 1/2 cup Tomato, ripe, diced
- 1/2 cup Cucumber, peeled, seeded, diced
- 1/2 cup Lemon, juice of, fresh
- 1 clove Garlic, fresh, finely minced
- 1/2 cup Olive Oil
- 1 tsp. Cumin, ground
- 1/4 tsp. Coriander, ground
- To Taste: Kosher or Sea Salt
- To Taste: Black Pepper, freshly ground
- Optional: Kalamata Olives, pitted, halved
- 1/3 cup Sour Cream
- 1/3 cup Yogurt, plain
- 1/2 Lemon, juice of
- 1 Tbsp. Red Wine Vinegar
- 1/2 cup Cucumber, garden, not seedless-type, peeled, seeded, large dice
- 2 cloves Garlic, peeled, trimmed of root end, minced
- 1 Tbsp. Dill, fresh, chopped
- To Taste: Kosher or Sea Salt
- To Taste: Black Pepper, freshly ground
- 2 lb. Tuna Loin, fresh as can be, cut into 2 or 3 roughly 1 ½ x 3” rectangular logs (depends on size and shape of loin) free of any and all sinew or blood line
- To Taste: Kosher or Sea Salt
- To Taste: Black Pepper, freshly ground
- 2 tsp. Olive Oil
Directions
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the first set of ingredients and fold together, distributing them evenly. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- For the Cucumber-Dill Sauce, combine the second set of ingredients in a high-speed blender. Blend until thoroughly smooth. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- For the tuna, pre-heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Just before you are ready to sear the tuna, season each loin on all sides with salt and pepper. Pour the last measure of oil into the pan and swirl to heat through and spread out. Carefully lay the loins into the hot pan. Quickly sear the loins until just lightly browned on their first side − roughly 30 seconds − and then flip over onto the other side. Remove from the pan and place on a plate to cool. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to solidify, which will aid in slicing.
- To serve, divide the tabouleh among chilled plates. Using a very sharp knife, with a long slicing motion, slice the tuna into ¼” thick slices and divide among the plates, draping over the tabouleh. Drizzle the tuna as desired with the cucumber-dill sauce and serve the rest on the side. Garnish with parsley sprigs if using and serve.
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