Sesame Seared Tuna along with a medley of sauteed vegetables lay on a bed of fresh zucchini noodles, suspended in a gochujang-soy broth. A zoodle bowl as comforting as it is flavorful.
I have a bit of an obsession with Seared Tuna at the moment. Maybe I always have. This was the first fish I filleted myself and cooked (or didn’t cook- I made poke and ceviche.)
If you’re not a super “fishy” person, it may not be for you. Stick to mahi or other white fish. But for me, I absolutely love the texture of the just barely cooked, beautiful fish. And after really getting into one myself, I can see the textural changes in the belly, cheek, and top of the tuna, all dependent on the ratio of lean tissue to fat.
Fresh Market was having a sale, $5 for each tuna steak, which in the grocery world is pretty damn good. So I picked up four. Two I cooked for a friend and I, and the other two I froze, and am hoping to make something delicious out of them tomorrow.
If you follow this blog, you probably are aware that I love my spiralizer. I really do. If there is an opportunity to swap out pasta for zoodles (zucchini noodles), I will take advantage of it. Just last night, I was making Chicken Parmesan and had to swap out normal angel hair noodles for zoodles, because why not eat more vegetables amIright?! Plus this gives a little room for other carb sources, like garlic bread.
On to the matter at hand, this Seared Tuna Asian Zoodle Bowl.
This delicious gochujang-soy broth suspends a delicious pile of noodles topped with mushrooms, bell pepper, scallion, carrots, cucumber, and of course – seared tuna. The mix of flavors here is amazing, but as always, feel free to mix it up. This is a great dish for using up whatever vegetables you’ve already got laying around.
Ingredients: (makes 2-3 zoodle bowls)
For the broth:
- 2 Cups Broth- Miso Ginger Broth is best (find at Trader Joe’s) but can also use vegetable broth or dashi
- 1 Cups water
- 1 1/2 TBSP gochujang (fermented chile paste- found in Asian markets and in the “Asian/Indian” aisle of grocery stores)
- 1/2 tsp ginger (minced)
- 1/2 tsp garlic (minced)
- 1 tsp soy sauce
For the rest of the zoodle bowl:
- 3 medium zucchinis
- 1 tsp garlic (minced)
- 1 bell pepper
- 1/2 cup carrots
- 1/2 cup mushrooms
- 1 cucumber
- 3 scallions, thinly sliced
- 2-3 fillets of sushi-grade tuna
- 3 TBSP sesame seeds
- EVOO
Directions:
- Prep: Spiralize both the zucchini and the cucumber. Lay on paper towels to draw some of the moisture out. Mince the ginger and garlic, and slice all other vegetables. Crust the tuna with sesame seeds by drizzling each fillet with a bit of oil, then coating all sides with sesame seeds that are dispersed on a paper plate.
- Make the broth: Begin by heating a drizzle of oil in a large saucepan on medium-high heat. Saute ginger and garlic until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add in broth and water. Once the liquid is hot, whisk in gochujang and soy sauce. Bring the broth to a simmer and keep on low heat.
- Saute Vegetables: Heat another drizzle of oil in a large nonstick pan on medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add carrots and bell pepper to the pan, cooking for about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook for an additional 3 minutes, or until tender. Set vegetables aside, keeping pan on the heat.
- Cook the zoodles: Add your spiralized zucchini to the broth, and cook for about 5-7 minutes, until zoodles are al-dente.
- Sear Tuna: Once tuna is coated in sesame seeds, heat a drizzle of oil in the same nonstick pan you used for vegetables. Cook on all sides for 1-2 minutes, using tongs to ensure that the entire outside of tuna is seared. Set aside.
- Finish: Add cooked zoodles to large bowls. Pour the gochujang-soy broth over noodles until bowl is filled a bit more than halfway. Top with sauteed vegetables, spiralized cucumber, and scallions. Finish by fanning out tuna on top and a sprinkle of sesame seeds or a drizzle of soy sauce/sriracha if desired.
Enjoy! Let me know your favorite way to cook (or not cook) tuna!
-Pam
mindtotable.com 