Smoked Tuna Food

SMOKED TUNA RECIPE

Steps:

• Brine is crucial to add moisture to the tuna.
• Mix all of the ingredients listed above into the water.
• Stir vigorously to blend all those flavors together.
• Bring the tuna brine back down to room temperature, and pour the mixture into a bowl or shallow pan.
• Add the tuna, making sure it is submerged. (Make and add more brine if necessary.)
• If you use a bowl rather than a pan, you can divide the tuna along with brine into zipper-style plastic bags for the next step.
• ​Leave the pan uncovered and put it into your refrigerator.
• Or take your plastic bags of marinating tuna and put them in your refrigerator.
• Allow at least three hours for the tuna to marinate well.
• Some people leave it in the refrigerator for six hours, or even overnight.
• The original recipe I used called for six hours, but I found that a lot of the tuna flavor was lost with that length of time.
• Three hours seemed to be just about perfect.
• While the original recipe said to rinse the tuna before patting it dry, it just didn't make sense to me to rinse off all of the good stuff I'd put in the brine.
• So I patted the fish dry using paper towel, leaving on as much of the good flavorings as I could.
• Once you've pat-dried the tuna, air dry it for one to two hours on a cold grill rack or similar stand.
• You can speed up the drying process by putting the tuna in front of a fan, but make sure the meat doesn't get too dried out.
• Depending on your own environmental conditions even an hour of air-drying may be too much.
• The goal is to let a good pellicle develop and stop there, so keep a close eye on that tuna.
• The pellicle is the coating or skin on the surface of the tuna (or other meat) that allows smoke to adhere.
• It's useful in smoking any kind of meat, but is especially important for smoking fish.
• The pellicle protects the meat from being over-smoked, but enhances the flavor and color from smoking.
• Once you are satisfied that the pellicle is well formed but the tuna still somewhat moist, dredge the tuna in some more brown sugar.
• It means to coat a moist food (such as marinated tuna) with a dry ingredient (such as brown sugar) prior to cooking.
• In other words, simply roll the tuna through some brown sugar, making sure to coat each piece evenly.
• Another recipe calls for fresh lemon juice, garlic powder, ground black peppers or other spices add subtle flavors, but really - it's all up to you!
• Place the dredged pieces on racks, or directly on your grill.
• The type of wood chips you're going to use depends on the type of smoke flavor you want to get.
• Fruit wood like cherry wood usually isn't used for smoked fish, so you might wan to explore other options.
• Smoke the meat at 175 degrees for 60 to 120 minutes.
• If your thermometer tends to reflect a higher temperature than has usually really been achieved, move the temperature up to 190 degrees.
• Larger cuts require more time.
• Experiment with your own cuts and the time necessary to perfect each piece.
• Check your temperature regularly to make sure you are staying in range.
• You'll notice a change in color to the tuna.
• To be extra certain that your tuna is well-cooked, use a meat thermometer and look for a temperature at the midpoint of the meat of about 140 degrees.
• Once you reach that, you can pull the tuna out of the smoker.
• If you see a flakiness to your tuna, you've done a perfect job!

SMOKED ALBACORE LOIN

Steps:

• Rinse loins and pat dry. Cut loins into 6 to 8-ounce pieces. Sprinkle a liberal amount of kosher salt on all surfaces of the albacore. Coat fish with light brown sugar and work kosher salt and sugar in all crevices. Smoke the albacore at 170 degrees F for 2 1/2 to 3 hours using a combination apple and oak wood chips.

SMOKED TUNA WITH YOGURT CUCUMBER SALAD

Steps:

• Cut the tuna into thin strips or small cubes and dress very lightly with fresh lemon zest and juice; season to taste with salt and pepper.
• With a small spoon remove the seeds and cut the cucumber into "half moon" pieces. Make a dressing of yogurt and dill; season to taste with salt and pepper and toss with cucumber "half moons". Make a little pile of lemon dressed smoked tuna in the center of each dinner plate and surround it with the yogurt dressed cucumbers.

CHEF JULIAN'S SMOKED TUNA TACOS

Steps:

• Preheat a smoker to 225 degrees F (110 degrees C) according to manufacturer's instructions.
• Mix brown sugar and 1/4 cup salt together in a bowl.
• Score ahi tuna skin with a sharp knife; rub with brown sugar and salt mixture.
• Smoke tuna until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 140 degrees F to 155 degrees F (60 degrees C to 68 degrees C), about 1 hour.
• Mix masa corn flour and water together in a bowl until a slightly sticky dough forms. Divide dough into large balls.
• Heat a lightly oiled griddle over medium-high heat. Flatten balls of masa to 1/4-inch thickness and cook until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Cool sopes on a wire rack.
• Preheat a grill for medium-high heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Place tomatillos, half the onion, and 1 jalapeno pepper on the grill; cook until charred on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a blender; blend into a smooth sauce. Season with salt.
• Dice remaining onion and jalapeno. Mix with tomatoes, avocados, and cilantro in a bowl. Season with lime juice and salt.
• Place cooked sopes on serving plates. Top with smoked tuna, tomatillo sauce, and avocado mixture. Garnish with shredded cabbage and queso fresco.

SMOKED TUNA DIP

Steps:

• Blend all ingredients together well using a stand mixer or hand mixer. Taste, and adjust seasonings to your liking. Be careful adding more liquid smoke, a little goes a long way!
• When ready to serve, try adding a light sprinkling of paprika over the top for decoration.

SMOKED TUNA DIP

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, mix the Italian-style salad dressing, sour cream, seasoning salt, onion, liquid smoke and tuna. Chill in the refrigerator approximately 1 hour before serving.