Albacore Catches On
From the July/August 2010 issue
Seared Albacore Tuna Salad
Courtesy of Chef Robert Belcham, Refuel, Vancouver, B.C.
Serves 4.
4 large eggs
4 fillets of albacore tuna, each weighing about 6 ounces
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
2 small heads of butter lettuce, cored, leaves separated, washed, and dried
White wine vinaigrette (recipe follows)
1/3 cup pitted olives, coarsely chopped
2 Tablespoons preserved lemon, chopped
1/2 cup cooked white beans (if using canned, drain and rinse well)
1. In a small pot, bring water to a simmer. Carefully add the eggs and cook for 6 minutes. Remove the eggs and quickly put into ice water bath to cool. Once cooled, peel and set aside.
2. Season albacore fillets with salt. Heat oil in a cast iron skillet or other heavy bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Sear each piece of tuna quickly, 10-15 seconds or so on each side. Remove from pan and let cool. Once cooled, slice tuna with a very sharp knife into 4 or 5 slices.
3. In a large salad bowl, toss the butter lettuce with just enough vinaigrette to coat the leaves. Add olives, lemon, and the cooked white beans. Arrange the salad on 4 chilled plates with the slices of tuna and 1 boiled egg cut in half. Drizzle the salads with remaining vinaigrette and serve.
White wine vinaigrette
1 medium shallot, peeled and sliced into 1/3-inch rings
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Separate the shallots into individual rings and season with salt. Set aside. In a small bowl, whisk the vinegar and olive oil until blended, and add the sliced shallots. Season with freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Albacore Tuna Cassoulet
Courtesy of Chef Mark Bodinet, Cedarbrook Lodge, Seattle, WA. Serves 4.
Chef Bodinet shares his Pacific Northwest twist on the French classic stew.
Albacore tuna takes the place of duck confit and sausage for a lighter yet satisfying
summer entrée.
4 fillets of albacore tuna, each weighing about 6 ounces
3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ cup fish stock (or water)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 small shallot, chopped finely
1 Tablespoon finely chopped garlic
22-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
8 ounces green beans, blanched (if using canned, drain and rinse well)
1. Drizzle fillets with extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper. In a nonstick sauté pan over high heat (or over a hot grill), cook albacore for 1 minute on each side. The tuna should be medium-rare in the center.
2. In a medium-sized pot, bring the cream and fish stock (or water) to a boil
and add mustard, shallot, and garlic. Once the liquid has reduced by half, add the
green beans and heat. Serve the beans hot with cooked albacore on top.
Poached Albacore Tuna with Chartreuse Lettuce Sauce
Courtesy of Courtney Sproule, din din Catering, Portland, OR.
Serves 4.
“I was introduced to this sauce by chef Robert Reynolds at his cooking school, The
Chef Studio (in Portland, Oregon),” remembers Courtney Sproule. “The crunch of the
lettuce and the complexity of the herbaceous Chartreuse was an unexpected treat.”
Sproule says any lettuce you find at the farmers market will work (although avoid
aggressively flavored greens, such as mustards). Red lettuces are okay, but mostly
green colors will result in a more brilliant sauce.
1 Tablespoon salt
2 medium heads of lettuce, cored, leaves separated, washed, and dried well
1 Tablespoon + 2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 small yellow onions, small diced
1/2 cup canned, peeled tomatoes
1 Tablespoon picked fresh thyme, chopped
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup chicken stock
zest of 1/2 lemon
2 Tablespoons Green Chartreuse
4 fillets of albacore tuna, each weighing about 6 ounces
1 quart canola oil, for poaching
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 Tablespoon green onions, thinly sliced
1. In a large pot, bring water to a boil and add 1 Tablespoon of salt. Blanch lettuce leaves until just limp, about 30 seconds. Remove to an ice bath. Gently squeeze out water and let dry in a colander or over towels.
2. Heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil over medium-low heat in a pan, add onion and
a pinch of salt. Lower the heat, cover, and cook gently, making sure not to brown the
onion, for 10-15 minutes. Once the onion is soft and sweet, remove the lid, add
tomato, thyme, bay leaf, and a pinch of salt and cook at a low simmer until almost
all the liquid has evaporated. Add wine and stock and once again, cook at a low
simmer until almost all the liquid has evaporated.
3. Remove mixture and place into a food processor. Add lettuce and lemon
zest. Pulse, adding remaining olive oil and Chartreuse, to achieve a texture between
pesto and relish. Season to taste with salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Set
4. Fill a straight edge sauté pan with olive oil and heat it to 150 degrees Fahrenheit. Liberally season the portioned pieces of albacore with salt and pepper and gently slip into the oil. After about 4 minutes, check the tuna and pull them out as soon as they become fully opaque on both sides. The oil should never reach a simmer—it's very gentle cooking. Remove tuna and serve immediately covered with sauce.
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