Spice Crusted Tuna Steaks With Hollandaise Sauce

Tuna is a well loved fish , let say its our main source of protein. When I was growing up we usually ate Skipjack tuna  which is a smaller tuna with blue or black lines  going on it. Now adays we get Yellow Fin tuna and I recently bought these fat  fillet of Yellowfin Tuna and  cut it into  steak pieces.  I prefer to cook it all the way through but not tough and chewy.
I once went to this  well known restaurant ,here in Male' ,with a couple of friends and one of my friends ordered grilled tuna steak with oven roasted veg  and rice.  On the menu it sounded pretty good but sadly what arrived was over cooked with no sauce and a sad looking piece of carrot and plain  rice.  I am not saying I am a very good cook but as a  customer , had it been  served to someone like Gordan Ramsey    who  would probably send it back or as Manu fidel says 'where is the sauce!!'

So it got me thinking  how would I like a piece of tuna steak served, after wracking my brains for a while, came up with this spice  crust , like they do for  beef sometimes, and for a sauce I went for hollandaise. This is the first  time I tried hollandaise  sauce , I tried the two version, the butter one and the olive oil one ( from a Gordan Ramsey recipe). The boys liked the butter one while hubby liked the olive oil one.  Mind you hollandaise sauce  is delicious but all that butter !!! Oh my! . So best made for special occasions not everyday sauce LOL.  I served it along with some  green beans and pan fried potatoes. 

Recipe:  Tuna Steaks with Hollandaise Sauce ( Hollandaise sauce recipe from  Williams and Sonoma's Tools and Technique cook book.

For 4

600g Tuna Steak Pieces ( or purchase a 600 piece fillet and slice into 1/2 inch  steak pieces

3 tbsp black peppercorns

2 tsp coriander seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

salt ( about 1/4 tsp?)

about 4 tsp mustard ( can be dijon or regular american mustard)

A little olive oil.

Hollandaise : 200g unsalted butter

                      2 egg yolks

                      1 tbsp lime juice

                      zest of 1 lime

                      2 tbsp water

                      salt to taste

First, place the spices except the salt  and mustard on a dry frying pan and toast over a low heat till you get a slight aroma, say about 3-5 minutes. Cool and add to a  grinder and pulse a few times to a coarse mix, NOT FINE POWDER! Add salt and set aside.

Now the tuna,  Season the fish with  tiny bit salt and then brush with  mustard. One teaspoon per steak will be enough to coat all the sides. 

Next   spread the spice mix on a plate  and  one at a time, take the steak and press down on the  spice mix to coat it with it.    Remove and set a side.  

Heat a frying pan  over a medium heat,  add just a little olive oil   just to coat the bottom and place the steak pieces. Depends on how big your frying pan is , if you can place all of them with some distances apart then add all but if its too snug do in batches.  You want to cook 2-3 minutes per side.  Press  down a bit and then flip on the other side .  Cook another 2-3 minutes on that side and remove. Check  by cutting a little piece  on the end to see if its cooked through  or to your liking, I know some of you like it pink in the middle. I like to pop them into a warm oven ( about 120 degrees for about 5 minutes ), just dont keep them in their then you get big hard pieces  of  fish. 

Now the Hollandaise, its very technical.  You need a small saucepan,  first  add the butter and melt the butter on a low heat. After the butter has melted, there is big white scum on top, using a spoon  remove that white scum. You will be using the clear  clarified butter in the bottom.  Pour this into a measuring jug and set a side  to cool. 

Wash the sauce pan and add 1-2 inches of water and bring to a boil then simmer over a low heat. Place the eggs into a heat proof bowl thats  big enough to be set on top of the saucepan.  In to the  egg yolks add lime juice and water and  whisk first. Then place this over the  simmering pan of water. Whisk vigorously   till it becomes foamy and thick.  Remove and add a drizzle of  butter from the side and whisk as you add. This is best done either with someone holding the egg bowl , as the bowl tends to slide off the counter . Or you can check the video I have added to show how its done.  I added half the butter first, whisked and place on the simmering saucepan for a minute , whisking constantly and again added the remaining butter.  Remove after a minute,taste add salt and the lime zest. Pour into a sauce jug or small bowl. 

To view how its done click here to check the video I saw on youtube.

Serve  the tuna steaks with a smear of  hollandaise or poured on top with some potatoes and green beans. Enjoy!