This recipe comes from Weber’s recipe library: Marinated Ahi Tuna Steaks with Cucumber Scallion Relish on weber.com. It serves four, uses a soy, lime, honey and ginger marinade, and sears the steaks quickly over high heat. Quantities and timings below follow Weber’s page; the wording is ours.
Tuna steaks are lean and cook fast, so the recipe is built around a very hot, preheated grate and a short cook. Because that short cook leaves the center less than fully cooked, this article also sets out what the FDA says about doneness, so you can decide how to cook yours.
Ingredients (serves 4)
Marinade and tuna
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger
- ½ teaspoon sriracha
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- 4 ahi tuna steaks, each about 8 ounces (225 g) and 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick
Cucumber scallion relish
- 3 scallions, thinly sliced
- 1 cup finely diced, seeded English or Persian cucumber
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger
- A pinch of kosher salt
The recipe lists a sear grate as its special equipment. Metric amounts are our conversions.
Method
- Whisk the marinade ingredients (everything above except the tuna) in a bowl. Set 3 tablespoons aside for the relish and for brushing the cooked fish.
- Lay the tuna in a baking dish, pour the rest of the marinade over it, and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour, turning once or twice.
- Mix the relish ingredients in a bowl, stir in 1 tablespoon of the reserved marinade, and chill until needed.
- Heat the grill for direct cooking over high heat, 450–500°F (about 230–260°C). Heat the sear grate over direct high heat for at least 10 minutes.
- Lift the tuna from the marinade, letting the excess drip off, and throw the used marinade away.
- Cook the steaks on the sear grate with the lid open, turning once, until they are just turning opaque throughout, or to your preferred doneness. Weber gives about 4 minutes for medium-rare.
- Take them off, brush with the reserved marinade, and serve at once with the relish spooned on top.
The marinade you brush on at the end is the portion set aside in step 1, before it touched raw fish. The marinade the tuna sat in is discarded.
Tuna Doneness: What the FDA Says
Weber’s recipe leaves the doneness to you and describes medium-rare at about 4 minutes. The FDA’s seafood guidance states that most seafood should be cooked to an internal temperature of 145°F (63°C; the Celsius figure is our conversion), and that it is always best to cook seafood thoroughly to minimize the risk of foodborne illness. A medium-rare tuna steak is not cooked to that temperature, so the recipe’s default sits below the FDA’s general guideline. The recipe does not give a time for a fully cooked steak, so if you want to reach 145°F, cook longer than 4 minutes and confirm with a thermometer.
The FDA adds two points for anyone who does choose to eat fish raw or undercooked. Its rule of thumb is to choose fish that has been previously frozen, because freezing kills any parasites present; however, freezing does not kill all harmful germs. It also says pregnant women, children, older adults and people with weakened immune systems should avoid raw or undercooked fish or shellfish.
Choosing the Tuna
Weber’s ingredient list says only “ahi tuna steaks,” without naming a species. Separately, the FDA’s fish-consumption advice for people who might become or are pregnant, breastfeeding mothers and young children names bigeye tuna among seven fish with the highest methylmercury levels that this group should avoid. If that applies to you, ask the seller which species you are buying.
What This Recipe Contains
This is not vegetarian or vegan: it contains tuna, and the marinade includes honey. Soy sauce and sriracha are bottled products whose full ingredients vary by brand and are not specified in the recipe, so check their labels.
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