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Sesame Encrusted Ahi with a Mixed Greens Salad Dressed with Poblano Dressing, Blue Cheese and Toasted Pecans

recipe

This is a killer meal for two. I suggest using sushi-grade Ahi or Mahi-Mahi tuna and pairing both dishes with a decent Fumé Blanc (which is drier than Sauvignon Blanc).

Ingredients

Dressing:

  • 1 Poblano (Pasilla) Chile, stemmed and seeded
  • 1/4 c. buttermilk
  • 1/4 c. mayonnaise
  • 1 tbsp. chopped green onions
  • 1 clove garlic, smashed and chopped
  • 1 tsp. fresh squeezed lime juice1
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Salad:

  • 8-10 cups mixed greens (arugula, spinach, lettuce, etc.)
  • 1/2 c. crumbled blue cheese
  • 1/2 c. pecans

Tuna Dish:

  • 2 6-8 oz. sushi-grade Tuna fillets or steaks (Ahi, Mahi Mahi, Yellowfin, etc.)
  • 1 c. store-bought asian marinade (Teriyaki, for example... essentially soy sauce with some sugar and stuff).
  • 1/4 c. + 1/4 c. + 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 c. julienne veggies (carrot, zucchini, squash)
  • 2 tbsp. black sesame seeds
  • 1 bunch chives
  • 1 c. white rice (basmati), uncooked
  • 1 tbsp. green onion

Directions:

  1. Roast Poblano pepper. Place pepper on cookie sheet 3-4" from broiler in oven. I get good results with doing the first side for 5 minutes and the other side for 3 minutes. You want a blackened skin and floppy flesh with a chile aroma. When roasted, place in a small bowl and cover with very hot water (you can boil some water in a kettle and then let stand for a few minutes). Let sit for 30 minutes.
  2. Make chive oil. Put the bunch of chives in a blender or food processor. Add the 2 tbsp. of olive oil and purée. Strain the results into a small dish and place in the refrigerator, covered, for later.
  3. Toast nuts. Take a 1/2 c. of whole pecan pieces and either put them on a cookie sheet in a 375° oven for 5-10 minutes or roast them in a small pan on the stovetop (medium-high) stirring every 20 seconds or so. You're looking for the flesh of the nut to start to crack and for them all to give off a nutty aroma. Set aside.
  4. Cut veggies. Cut the 2 tbsp. of green onions needed and set aside separately (like in two small condiments dishes). To one (for the dressing) add the garlic and lime juice. Julienne the carrot, zucchini and squash; set aside.
  5. Make dressing. Add the Poblano chile and rest of dressing ingredients to a blender or food processor. Purée well. Put dressing in a bowl and cover. Place in fridge until needed.
  6. Marinade tuna. Pour marinade into a flat-bottomed bowl. Add tuna 1 at a time to coat well. Remove from marinade and place on a plate. Cover and place in fridge for 30 minutes.
  7. Cook rice. I use basmati and the tried and true recipe for such rice: Bring two cups of water to a boil over high heat in a covered saucepan; add rice and dash of salt; reduce heat to a bare simmer; stir rice well, add cover and don't think about it for 30 minutes.
  8. Cooke veggies. In a medium to large sauté pan over medium-high heat, add 1/4 c. olive oil (or just enough to coat the bottom, you can always add more). Add julienne veggies and cook for 4-5 minutes. Set aside veggies.
  9. Wash and bowl greens. Wash salad greens and dry them in a spinner (if you have one). Add to a large salad bowl.
  10. Coat and Cook Tuna. Put a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add 1/4 c. olive oil or just enough to coat bottom. Place 1/2 of black sesame seeds on a plate and spread them out. Take the first piece of tuna, coat both sides and add quickly to the pan. Put more sesame seeds on the plate and coat second piece of tuna and add to the pan. Sear both sides of the tuna until you can see no more than about 1 cm of cooked flesh on the pan side of the tuna. Remove the tuna and let cool for five minutes.
  11. Complete salad. Add just enough dressing to the salad greens to coat leaves. Crumble blue cheese over the top and sprinkle pecans over it as well. Take the salad bowl to the table.
  12. Plate rice and veggies. Take a 1 c. measuring cup and add cooked rice to mold it. Dump molded rice into the center of a serving plate. Add julienne veggies on top of the rice.
  13. Plate tuna. Slice tuna into 1/2" slices. Arrange around mound of rice and veggies. Dollop the chive oil around the plate and flick onto tuna. Sprinkle the other tbsp. of green onions over the top for garnish. Serve.

Footnotes:

1 Here's a neat trick from Alton Brown for getting just a little bit of juice out of a fresh lime: roll the lime on a counter to loosen the pulp a bit; then insert a toothpick deeply into one end of the lime; squeeze out just the amount of juice you want and; place the toothpick back in the whole and the whole lime in the fridge (just in case you might use it later).