Nina’s Pecan Crusted Tuna with Yogurt Sauce

Main-Dish
Written By Holly Enowski

Submitted by: NINA MUKERJEE FURSTENAU

Their Food Story:

Sometimes you just need pecan encrusted ahi tuna. Brings a comfort all its own. Warm, rich, delicious and easy to make. I also like the yogurt sauce here very much-- it reminds me of a simple Indian raita. This recipe, adapted from Epicurious, adds 1 cucumber, halved and seeded to the yogurt sauce. That's tasty, too, but since I don't always have a cucumber handy, I've come to like the yogurt/garlic/lemon combination best.

PECAN CRUSTED TUNA
with YOGURT SAUCE

Serves:  2

Ingredients:

  • 2 (8 ounce) tuna steaks, 1 inch thick

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed thyme (or try out other herbs such as sage, or basil)

  • 1 tablespoon parsley flakes

  • olive oil

  • 1 cup finely chopped pecans

  • Yogurt sauce:

    • 8 ounces plain yogurt

    • 3 cloves minced garlic

    • juice of 1 lemon

    • salt and pepper to taste

    • Option from Epicurious: add 1 cucumber, halved, seeded and use a blender to mix all sauce ingredients

Instructions:

Pat the tuna steaks dry and rub both sides with olive oil. Mix salt, pepper, thyme, and parsley together in a small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of the tuna steaks with this mixture. Place the nuts on a plate or shallow bowl and press both sides of the steaks into the nuts. Set aside.

Place all ingredients for the yogurt sauce in a bowl and mix well. Heat a non-stick or cast iron pan on medium-high heat. Coat with olive oil and add the steaks. Cook about 1 minute per side or to desired done-ness. The nuts will slip off in places--just scoop them back on top of the tuna. Ladle sauce in the middle of plate and place the pecan crusted steak directly on it.

Holly Enowski
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