Authentic Vietnamese recipe? I seriously doubt it.
I left out the mint, replaced the cilantro with my preferred curly parsley, and cut out the rice vinegar entirely.
Of course, since I had started by finding a recipe for making Vietnamese tuna burgers make with chopped fresh tuna and panko crumbs, and I was starting with thawed frozen tuna steaks, I think it still made for a fine Asian-flavored dinner.
If mebbe not authentic.
INGREDIENTS
•1 tbsp sesame oil
•1/4 cup honey
•1 tbsp fish sauce
•1/4 cup soy sauce
•2 tbsp fresh lime juice
•1 cup minced fresh parsley
•3 scallions, sliced
•1/4 cup diced red onion
•1/2 cup diced green pepper
•1/2 cup shredded carrot
•1/2 tsp seasoned salt
•Black pepper
•1 lb tuna steak
Combine the sesame oil, honey, fish sauce, soy sauce, and lime juice together and pour over the tuna steaks in a zipper bag.
Add the white and light-green parts only of the scallion (save the darker bits to sprinkle over the finished dish, they add a bitter taste when cooked), the onion, green pepper, and carrot, season all with a the salt and a bit of pepper, give it all a light squeeze to mix well and coat the tuna, then stash in the fridge on a rimmed plate for an hour to marinate.
Heat and lightly oil your grill grates, then add the tuna, along with some of the veggies from the marinade (discard the marinade).
Grill for four to five minutes per side. My kitchen grill doesn’t get super hot, even when set on high, so adjust your cooking times if you use a regular grill. Also, because this is frozen tuna, I cook it a bit more than I would a piece from our local fishmonger.
Serve sprinkled with those dark green scallion slices, a bit of freshly minced parsley, some fresh lime juice, and, if you like (we do) a sprinkle or three of Sriracha.
We had ours over some garlic quinoa in place of rice, but I wouldn’t say no to some smoky sesame noodles next time.
Hmmm. Sesame noodles…