Seared Albacore Tuna in Charmoula

When you start with fresh ingredients it doesn’t take a big kitchen to create something fabulous.

Fish is often "misunderstood". This very easy recipe will give you immense flavor and is almost fail proof.

Seared Albacore Tuna in Charmoula (Morrocan marinade and sauce)

1 lb. Albacore tuna loin

Charmoula

1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

¾cup parsley leaves, chopped

1-2 small garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp. Kosher salt

1 tsp. ground cumin

½ tsp. smoked paprika

¼ tsp. ground coriander

pinch of cayenne pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbls. fresh lemon juice

1 red bell pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced (or if using jarred, about ½ cup)

Prepare Charmoula sauce. In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients. Stir to combine and adjust seasonings to taste with salt, lemon juice and cayenne.

Place tuna loin on a plate and rub with a few tablespoons of Charmoula. Set aside to marinate no longer than 30 minutes as the acid in the lemon juice will begin to "cook" the tuna.

Heat a cast iron pan on medium high heat. The pan should just begin to smoke. Add a film of olive oil and then carefully add the tuna. Cook on each side about 1-2 minutes or until you have just cooked the outside edges and it is still nice and pink on the interior. When  you have seared all sides, remove from the pan and set on a cutting board. Let rest about 10 minutes. Slice in ¼ inch slices and fan out onto a serving platter. Add the roasted peppers to the remaining Charmoula and pour on top of the tuna to serve. This is delicious with a side of couscous, steamed rice or roasted potatoes. Sliced avocado would be a lovely addition as well. Seared tuna also make a perfect hot weather meal atop a simple green salad.

Encores: Sauté tuna in a little olive oil and toss with pasta or white beans, roasted peppers, additional cilantro and sliced green onions. Ripe, in-season tomatoes would also pair well. Tuna can also be cooked, cooled, flaked and used in tuna salad. Just substitute Charmoula instead of the traditional mayonnaise dressing, add some sliced olives and diced cucumber or whatever your prefer and you will be delighted with this new twist on an old favorite.

Zupa Kapusta, Polish Cabbage Soup

   Meet my best girl Maria Lisieski, who stopped by the Airstream Argosy set to share her family's special winter cabbage and pork soup.

    This soup is hearty like a stew and is full of comforting and nourishing flavors. It's something you'll want to have on hand to get through those bone chilling, breath sucking, dark winter nights. It's easy to whip up and the servings are generous so there will be plenty to share with your other small footprint neighbors for a lovely communal dinner. 

    

Still can't believe we both showed up sporting the colors of Poland!  

Polish Cabbage Soup (Zupa Kapusta) 

Serves 4 to 6

Prep time: 15  to 20 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

From stove top to table in 1 1/2 hours

Kitchen Equipment:

• large soup pot
• medium saucepan
• colander
• cutting board
• kitchen knife
• vegetable peeler
• ladle
• soup bowls and spoons

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb. pork stew meat,  (pork shoulder cut into bite size pieces)

1 small head cabbage, chopped

1 pint (16oz) sauerkraut, lightly rinsed under cold water and chopped, sauerkraut juice reserved  

1 onion, chopped

1 apple, peeled and chopped fine

1 to 2 carrots, peeled and chopped fine

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon whole allspice

1/2 teaspoon whole white peppercorns

1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For Serving

8 to 12 fingerling potatoes or other small waxy potato such as Yellow Fin or Red Bliss, boiled with skins on and set aside

fresh dill, chopped fine

sauerkraut juice or apple cider vinegar

Dark Rye Bread with butter

Cooking Instructions:

Put all ingredients in a large soup pot.

Cover ingredients with water.

Cover soup pot with lid and bring to a quick boil over high heat.

Reduce to a simmer, uncover, and let cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While soup is simmering, prepare potatoes for serving by boiling them with skin on in a medium saucepan.

Drain in the colander when done, return to the saucepan and cover to keep warm until soup is done.

Taste soup and adjust seasonings to your liking. Add more sauerkraut juice, salt, and fresh ground black pepper accordingly.

To serve, place warm potatoes in soup bowls, then ladle soup over potatoes.

Sprinkle fresh dill on top.

Accompany soup with thick slices of dark rye bread and generous slatherings of butter.

Cook's Note:

I feel comforted and fortified every time I dig into a bowl of this sweet, tart, salty, and peppery soup my mom cooked for me and her mom before that. It is my "go to" meal for fall and winter and very economical too. I've taken to some variations using what I have on hand in my kitchen. I often skip the potatoes all together and add a large peeled, chopped turnip to the soup pot instead. Sometimes I add 4 to 6 leaves of chopped Swiss chard, stems included, to enrich the broth and delight in the visual punctuation of the darker greens. No sauerkraut on hand ? No problem. Just balance the sweet notes of the soup using apple cider vinegar after it is done cooking.  Want to adapt it to a Vegan and Vegetarian diets? Skip the pork and substitute 1oz. chopped dried Shiitake mushrooms  and 8oz. chopped fresh Crimini or 2 giant Portabello mushroom caps. Britta and I discovered that a Barbera d'Alba wine from Italy complements this meal quite nicely.

This soup can be stored in the refrigerator covered up to 5 days, or frozen in plastic containers (without potatoes) up to 2 months. If freezing, remember to leave 1/2 inch space at the top of the container for the expansion of the liquid.

How to filet a Albacore Tuna like a pro and a great Poké recipe

Every good fish dish must begin with the freshest fish. In this episode we started by going to the source for the freshest, most sustainable fish in Portland, Oregon. Enter, Lyf Gildersleeve, proprietor of the Flying Fish Company which was recently featured in Sunset magazine as one of the top 50 local food shops in the NW.  Needless to say, I was very excited about having him on the set, learning how to loin a tuna and making some incredible dishes with local Albacore!

After Lyf walked us through a how-to of loining a tuna, we created some amazing dishes in the sweet little Airstream Argosy on a gorgeous fall day. I'm guessing once you see the video you'll be running out to procure the freshest fish from your region so you can create your own delicious dishes and maybe even try your hand at loining your own fish.

Albacore Poké (Hawaiian style tuna pronounced PO-kay)

Prep time: 15 minutes     

Cooking Time: 0

1 lb. sushi grade Albacore tuna, cut into 1/2 inch dice

1/4 cup sliced green onions

1/4 cup minced sweet onion

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1/4 cup Tamari or soy sauce

2 tsp. toasted sesame oil

1 tsp. grated ginger root

1 - 2 tsp. minced Jalapeno or Serrano chili pepper

1 avocado, diced

salt

Optional:

1 cup diced pineapple, mango, peaches or watermelon

2 tsp. toasted sesame seeds

1/4 cup chopped Macadamia nuts

1 Tbls. dried seaweed

Place tuna in a medium bowl and add onions, cilantro, tamari, sesame oil, ginger root and the chilies. Gently stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add avocado and mix just enough to combine. If you are using optional ingredients, add with the onions and chilies. To eat like a Hawaiian, use a bamboo skewer to pick up the Poke. Serve as an appetizer as is or on a bed of greens or avocado half as a main dish salad.

Seared Albacore Tuna in Charmoula (Morrocan marinade and sauce)

Prep time: 15 minutes     

Cooking Time: 5-8 minutes

1 lb. Albacore tuna loin

Charmoula

1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

¾cup parsley leaves, chopped

1-2 small garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp. Kosher salt

1 tsp. ground cumin

½ tsp. smoked paprika

¼ tsp. ground coriander

pinch of cayenne pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbls. fresh lemon juice

1 red bell pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced (or if using jarred, about ½ cup)

Prepare Charmoula sauce. In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients. Stir to combine and adjust seasonings to taste with salt, lemon juice and cayenne.

Place tuna loin on a plate and rub with a few tablespoons of Charmoula. Set aside to marinate no longer than 30 minutes as the acid in the lemon juice will begin to "cook" the tuna.

Heat a cast iron pan on medium high heat. The pan should just begin to smoke. Add a film of olive oil and then carefully add the tuna. Cook on each side about 1-2 minutes or until you have just cooked the outside edges and it is still nice and pink on the interior. When  you have seared all sides, remove from the pan and set on a cutting board. Let rest about 10 minutes. Slice in ¼ inch slices and fan out onto a serving platter. Add the roasted peppers to the remaining Charmoula and pour on top of the tuna to serve. This is delicious with a side of couscous, steamed rice or roasted potatoes. Sliced avocado would be a lovely addition as well. Seared tuna also make a perfect hot weather meal atop a simple green salad.

Encores: Sauté tuna in a little olive oil and toss with pasta or white beans, roasted peppers, additional cilantro and sliced green onions. Ripe, in-season tomatoes would also pair well. Tuna can also be cooked, cooled, flaked and used in tuna salad. Just substitute Charmoula instead of the traditional mayonnaise dressing, add some sliced olives and diced cucumber or whatever your prefer and you will be delighted with this new twist on an old favorite.