Tuna Tapenade

Grilled tuna, which can be made outdoors or indoors, sounds awfully summer-ish, but in truth is luscious and healthy all year long. No grill or indoor grill pan? Use a heavy skillet. This easy version features a fast marinade and a briny topping that simply makes the dish. You can stir up my version of tapenade, make your own, or buy a jar at the store. The recipe is easily doubled or tripled for a group. Use the leftover tapenade on salad or bread.

serves 2

Ingredients

Marinade:

1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar- or any white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon each kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
Pinch crushed red pepper
1 large plump garlic clove, minced

Tuna:

2 (6-ounce) tuna steaks
Tapenade (separate recipe below)

Instructions

PREPARATION: Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for direct grilling over medium-high heat. Oil the grill racks with paper towels saturated with a neutral oil such as canola.
MARINATE THE TUNA: Whisk together the marinade ingredients in a measuring cup. Place tuna steaks in a non-reactive container (glass, stainless steel, or plastic) and pour half the marinade over the fish. Flip the fish and pour the other half of the marinade on top. Let fish rest in the marinade while grill heats.
GRILL THE TUNA: Grill the tuna directly over the heat elements, turning once, for 3-5 minutes on each side until it is seared on the outside and either rare or pink on the inside. (Cook a little longer if you like your tuna done.)
PLATE THE TUNA: Add each fillet to a serving plate and top with 3-4 tablespoons tapenade. Serve hot.
Cover tightly any leftovers, refrigerate quickly, and eat within a day or two

Notes

My thanks to Williams-Sonoma's handy book, ESSENTIALS OF GRILLING, for some of the wording on how to grill fish.