Sesame Seed Encrusted Grilled Tuna

As I suspect for many of you, when I was growing up tuna was a fish in a can that didn't have much flavor until it was made into tuna salad, or a casserole.  Times have changed; now fresh tuna has caught on big time in the US.  It served in wide a variety of restaurants, and is available at most supermarket fish counters.  There are various types of tuna, and some are more sustainably caught than others. For more information regarding sustainably caught fish please visit  the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program website. 

Particular types and cuts of tuna are prized in sushi, and prices for those prime cuts can be very very expensive. This preparation uses the sashimi grade tuna from my local super market.  Sashimi grade tuna is a commonly found high grade of tuna. It is used in most sushi restaurants, and in beef terms would be comparative to USDA Choice.  Tuna is delicious on its own, however when pared with sesame seeds it takes on an otherworldly quality.  There's just something about the flavors of the toasted sesame seeds and the fresh tuna that bring out the best in both. This simple recipe follows the same cooking guidelines as our steak recipe. Tuna should never be cooked well. The flesh should always have some pink. Medium rare is the most if should be cooked any longer and it will become dry and tough. At that point you might as well simply have purchased canned tuna and made a tuna salad with a hint of sesame oil added at the end. 

Ingredients:
4   quarter pound 1 inch thick tuna steaks
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Pepper
1 teaspoon oil
1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds


Step One:

Season both sides of the tuna steaks with salt and pepper. Place the sesame seeds on a plate, or a shallow dish. One at a time press the tuna steaks on to the sesame seeds rotating them until tall the surfaces of the tuna steak are covered with sesames seeds.

Step Two:
Oil and preheat the grill or grill pan to high heat.  Place the tuna steaks on the gill for 4 minutes. Turn the steaks over and grill for another four minutes more. Remove to a plate and let the steaks rest.