Express recipe! This tuna with mustard, anchovy and caper sauce is a recipe that has it all: it’s super quick to make, it’s incredibly tasty, and it’s a great way to bring tuna on the grill to life.
Believe me when I tell you that in 3 minutes the sauce is ready, and I'm sure you know how fast it is to sear a tuna steak on the grill (or in the skillet; it will be exactly the same since it's made of enameled cast iron), so this dish is a great and healthy option for everyday.
This is an ideal sauce for those who like intense flavors or who want to add more flavor to tuna, since thanks to its base ingredients (mustard, capers and the saltiness of anchovies) it is an intense sauce. I hope you like it as much as we do at home!
Revol slate plate and bowl and Le Creuset cast iron grill
Ingredients (for 2 people)
- 2 tuna loins
- 3 generous tablespoons of Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- Juice and zest of a small lemon
- 2 dessert tablespoons of capers
- 2 dessert tablespoons of basil
- 2 dessert tablespoons of chives (optional)
- 4 small anchovy fillets
- Salt and pepper
To accompany: to taste, rice, couscous, endives or salad...
Preparation
- In a chopper, add the mustard, oil, lemon juice and zest and the basil (and the chives, optionally). Blend until you get a homogeneous sauce - you'll see it's ready in a few seconds.
- Add the capers and the anchovies cut very thinly, finely chopped, to the sauce. Mix and set aside, you now have the sauce ready.
- Place a Le Creuset cast iron grill low-medium heat (you can also make it in a cast-iron skillet; it's exactly the same cooking surface, only the shape differs compared to cast-iron griddles).
- While the grill heats up, arrange the tuna loins on a plate or wooden board. Season one side with salt and pepper and flip to the other side. Brush the second side with the prepared mustard sauce.
- When the grill is hot, turn the heat to high, pour a splash of oil onto the grill and add the tuna loins. Let them cook on one side, and when you see (looking at their cross-section) that one side is done and the center starts to lose its red color, flip them and let them cook on the second side. When they’re ready, transfer them to a plate.
- Add a little sauce, which you can garnish with some chopped capers and anchovies on top. Ready to serve with the side you choose!
Notes
- Remember that it's important to heat pans and grills gradually, to allow the heat to distribute across the whole surface slowly and avoid burning the center (it's not advisable to set the heat to maximum at the start, because the center gets too hot and you can burn the utensil, while the edges remain cold, making it impossible to cook the food properly).
- Tuna loins (like other fish and meats, when cooking them on the grill), it’s important that they are at room temperature and not cold before placing them on the grill. So it’s better to take the loins out of the fridge 20 minutes before cooking so they lose the chill. Otherwise, when you put them on the grill they immediately lower its temperature, and it takes time to recover the optimal cooking temperature. Also, if they’re slightly warm they’ll cook more easily and quickly.
- To make the sauce in a chopper, I use the WMF electric one, or alternatively the Tefal manual one, ideal for small quantities. You can also use the small bowl of your food processor.
- For the tuna, it's interesting that the center remains somewhat pink when cooking: tuna, if overcooked, becomes very dry and it's preferable to leave it slightly rare inside (unless you are one of those who always prefer it well done).
- When serving, bring the tuna to the table with the leftover sauce in a bowl - there will surely be someone who wants to add a little more or use it to spread on some bread.
- Today I served it with endives with capers and herb-flavored feta cheese, which I dressed with the same oil from the cheese maceration. A very simple but delicious combination, and it went wonderfully with the tuna.
