Tuna Or Swordfish With Onion Confit Recipes

TUNA CONFIT

Steps:

• Place tuna in a bowl, cutting it into several pieces if necessary. Add olive oil, the garlic, thyme and lemon peel. Cover, and marinate 6 hours, refrigerated or at room temperature, or overnight in the refrigerator.
• Transfer contents of bowl to a saucepan, bring to a simmer, lower heat and cook 5 minutes. Shut off heat. Tuna will still be pink in middle. Let cool 30 minutes.
• Remove tuna, drain well, transfer to a bowl and mash coarsely with a fork. Fold capers, shallots, mustard and sherry vinegar into tuna. Whisk 2 tablespoons of the olive oil with chicken stock and grape seed oil. Fold into tuna. Season with salt and pepper. (Mixture should be fairly loose.)
• To serve at once, place mounds of tuna on each of 6 salad plates, scatter with more capers and serve with toast, as a first course. Otherwise, refrigerate tuna until 30 minutes before serving; then divide onto plates and serve.

TUNA OR SWORDFISH WITH ONION CONFIT

Steps:

• Put olive oil in a 10- or 12-inch skillet, and turn heat to medium. Add onions, a good pinch of salt, pepper and thyme or bay leaf. Cook, stirring, until mixture starts to sizzle, a minute or two. Adjust heat so that you need to stir at most every 5 minutes to keep onions from browning as they soften. Cook at least 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cut tomatoes in half and shake out seeds, then cut into 1/2-inch dice. Heat a grill until moderately hot.
• When onions are very soft, almost a shapeless mass, season fish and grill, turning once, for a total of about 6 minutes for tuna, 8 to 10 minutes for swordfish; check for doneness by making a small cut in the center to peek inside. While fish is grilling, stir olives and tomatoes into onions, and raise heat; cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes liquefy and mixture becomes juicy. Taste, and adjust seasoning. Serve fish on a bed of onion confit, whole fish cut into serving portions.

TUNA OR SWORDFISH WITH ONION CONFIT

Steps:

• Put the olive oil in a 10- or 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, a healthy pinch of salt, some pepper, and the thyme. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture starts to sizzle, a minute or two. Adjust the heat so that you have to stir only every 5 minutes at most to keep the onions from browning. They will become progressively softer; do not allow them to brown. Figure at least 30 minutes total for the onions to cook.
• Core the tomatoes, then cut them in half horizontally. Squeeze and shake out the seeds, then cut the tomatoes into 1/2-inch dice. Preheat a grill to moderately hot.
• When the onions are very soft, almost a shapeless mass, season the fish and grill it, turning once, for a total of about 6 minutes for tuna, 8 to 10 minutes for swordfish; check for doneness by making a small cut in the center of the fish and peeking inside. (Tuna can be quite rare; swordfish is best cooked to medium, when its interior is still slightly pearly rather than completely opaque.) While the fish is grilling, stir the olives and tomatoes into the onions and raise the heat a bit; cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes liquefy and the mixture becomes juicy. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve the fish on a bed of the onion confit.
• Variations
• Chicken with Onion Confit: Serve the onions with grilled skinless, boneless chicken breasts.
• Omit the thyme and use a bay leaf instead, or finish the dish with a handful of chopped fresh basil, chervil, or parsley.
• Cook some finely chopped aromatic vegetables, like carrots, celery or fennel, and garlic, along with the onions.