The best Mediterranean tuna recipe is very simple – a juicy cast iron tuna steak, some tomatoes, and black olives, rosemary, and garlic – that’s all you need for a masterpiece. Pour yourself a glass of cold white wine, summon a good mood and enjoy
I have just bought amazing fresh tuna steaks in the store, and on the way home, in my thoughts I am already cutting cherry tomatoes, opening a jar of black olives and cooking tuna. I love this fish in any preparation and form, but Mediterranean cast iron tuna steak is my biggest love!
Always choose the right fish
Do you know a Russian fairy tale about a fisherman and a golden fish? An old man and his wife lived by the sea. Every day the old man fished and earned his living by it. Then, one day, the old fisherman’s net caught not a mackerel, a sardine, or even a herring, but a real golden fish! The fish started pleading for freedom and promised to fulfill any old man’s wish for this. But the old man had a kind heart and he let the fish go just like that. Unfortunately, the old man’s wife didn’t have such a kind heart, so she began to scold her husband so that he would find the golden fish again and make it fulfill the old woman’s wish, and the woman had a ton of wishes! First, she needed a new trough, then she wanted a new house, and after that, she wished to become a queen. The old man went to look for the golden fish again, he found her and told her about all his wife’s whims. The fish obediently fulfilled all the old woman’s wishes.
But the insatiable fisherman’s wife could never be satisfied and after all the adventures with the trough, new houses, and royal titles, the old woman completely lost her head and wanted to become a sea queen. The golden fish got tired of all these whims, and the woman was left with nothing, as she was at the beginning of the fairy tale.
And do you know what the whole problem is?
It’s the wrong wish! The old woman didn’t need a new trough and royal titles! It would have been better if she had asked the golden fish for a juicy cast iron tuna steak (a pound of it… or more… or even better, a weekly supply of fresh tuna)! The old woman and her husband would have had a delicious lunch themselves, and they would have opened a fish restaurant. The woman would have gone to my website and would have read this Mediterranean tuna recipe, and this yummy thing would have attracted a huge number of visitors to their fish restaurant. And she would have earned money for a new house, and there would have been something for her to do (instead of thinking about stupid things like a new trough and royal titles) … well, of course, I’m joking … but this Mediterranean cast iron tuna steak is really divine!
The secret of a delicious juicy cast iron tuna steak?
The answer is very simple, avoid cooking tuna in the oven – it’s very easy to over-dry it, and this is the worst thing that can happen to fish. Over-dried tuna steak = spoiled (tasteless, uninteresting) piece of fish.
Cast iron tuna steak is the best option
As with most Italian dishes, additional ingredients should in no case interrupt the taste of the main component. In this Mediterranean tuna recipe, tuna is the king of the dish, and tomatoes, olives, garlic, and rosemary only pleasantly complement the taste, leaving the fish to “play the first fiddle”.
Fresh tuna steak or a frozen one?
Both options will work for this Mediterranean tuna recipe.
Do you know how to defrost tuna steak?
In the case of frozen tuna steak, you should adhere to one rule: defrost it slowly – remove the tuna steak from the freezer 12 hours before cooking it and leave it to defrost overnight on the top shelf of the fridge. Thanks to this, the tuna will retain all its juices and the steak won’t be dry.
Ingredients for the cast iron tuna steak:
- big tuna steaks (fresh or frozen)
- cherry tomatoes or medium tomatoes
- black olives
- clove of garlic
- white wine
- a sprig of fresh rosemary (can be replaced with the dried one)
- salt and pepper
- a pinch of smoked paprika
- olive oil
Mediterranean tuna recipe (step-by-step)
(Cast iron tuna steak cooks very quickly – 10 – 12 minutes and the dish is ready)
Pour a little oil on the bottom of the skillet (it should only grease the bottom, the fish won’t be emerged in oil as we are not going to deep fry it). When the skillet is hot, add the tuna steaks
As soon as the bottom of the fish begins to turn white, turn it carefully to the other side and cook for another 1-2 minutes
Cut the tomatoes into small cubes (you can simply cut the cherry tomatoes in half)
Add them to the skillet with tuna steaks, season with salt and pepper, add paprika and wine. Cook for 1 min without a lid, then cover with a lid and cook over medium heat for another 3 minutes (tomatoes will release juice, from which a delicious sauce will form at the end), turn the tuna steak to the other side and cook under the lid for another 2 minutes.
Add the olives, rosemary, garlic (crushed) and cook for another 2 minutes (without a lid).
What to serve with cast iron tuna steaks
This dish is so full of taste that no supplement is required for it. The only option is to sprinkle the steaks with a few drops of fresh lemon juice (lemon and fish are always the right combination). Well, if you want a complete taste ecstasy, then a glass of white wine will not be superfluous at all.
Enjoy your life brightly!
Cast iron tuna steak (Mediterranean tuna recipe)
Ingredients
- 2 big tuna steaks (fresh or frozen)
- 12 cherry tomatoes or 4 medium tomatoes
- 4 oz (100g) black olives
- 1 clove of garlic
- ¼ cup white wine
- a sprig of fresh rosemary (can be replaced with 1Tbsp of the dried one)
- salt and pepper
- a pinch of smoked paprika
- olive oil
Instructions
- Pour a little oil on the bottom of the skillet (it should only grease the bottom, the fish won’t be emerged in oil as we are not going to deep fry it). When the skillet is hot, add the tuna steaks
- As soon as the bottom of the fish begins to turn white, turn it carefully to the other side and cook for another 1-2 minutes
- Cut the tomatoes into small cubes (you can simply cut the cherry tomatoes in half)
- Add them to the skillet with tuna steaks, season with salt and pepper, add paprika and wine. Cook for 1 min without a lid, then cover with a lid and cook over medium heat for another 3 minutes (tomatoes will release juice, from which a delicious sauce will form at the end), turn the tuna steak to the other side and cook under the lid for another 2 minutes.
- Add the olives, rosemary, garlic (crushed) and cook for another 2 minutes (without a lid).
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