In Italy, the Feast of the Seven Fishes is a celebration on Christmas Eve featuring fish and other seafood dishes. Inspired by Sicilian flavors, our grilled tuna combines iconic flavors of olives and raisins, crowned with a zesty agrodolce (sweet & sour) sauce. It’s a taste that suits every season, guaranteed to make your taste buds dance with joy.
Ingredients
Directions
- Agrodolce Sauce: Mix together red wine vinegar, honey, chili flakes, and salt. Simmer over medium heat until the sauce reduces and thickens slightly.
- While the sauce is reducing, dry toast the pine nuts until they turn golden brown. Halve the green olives lengthwise, zest and juice the orange, and finely dice the red onion.
- In a bowl, combine the red onion, olives, pine nuts, and golden raisins. Pour the reduced sauce over the olive and onion mixture. Add orange juice and orange zest to the agrodolce sauce. Allow the sauce to cool. This can be prepared in advance and stored at room temperature for up to 5 days; the flavors meld together for a better result if made ahead.
- For serving, season tuna steaks with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Grill the tuna steaks for 1–2 minutes on each side, creating crosshatch grill marks. Rotate the steaks at a 90-degree angle halfway through each side.
- Toss caulilini in olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast in a convection oven at 375°F for 7 minutes while the tuna steaks are cooking. This can also be done in advance and flashed in the oven to reheat for service.
- Start plating by placing 4 ounces of the roasted caulilini. Prop the tuna partially over the caulilini to make it visible from underneath.
- Just before serving, mix freshly chopped parsley into the sauce. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the agrodolce over the tuna steak and caulilini, and around the plate's rim. Garnish with a drizzle of blood orange olive oil and 5–6 mint leaves.
Ingredient availability varies by location*