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Grilled Tuna with Lemon Anchovy Butter
© Melanie Acevedo

Grilled Tuna with Lemon Anchovy Butter

Contributed by Quick From Scratch Fish & Shellfish
  • ACTIVE:
  • TOTAL TIME:
  • SERVINGS: 4
  • FAST

Few meals are quicker to put together than this—grilled fish steaks topped with a simple compound butter. For even faster preparation, make the butter ahead of time and store it in the freezer until ready to use. The anchovy flavor here is quite mil...

  1. 4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
  2. 1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste
  3. 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  4. 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
  5. Salt
  6. Fresh-ground black pepper
  7. 4 tuna steaks, about 1 inch thick (about 2 pounds in all)
  8. 1 tablespoon cooking oil
  1. Light the grill or heat the broiler. In a small bowl, combine the butter, anchovy paste, lemon juice, parsley, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
  2. Coat the tuna with the oil. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook the tuna for 4 minutes. Turn and cook until done to your taste, 3 to 4 minutes longer for medium rare. Top the hot fish with the flavored butter.
Notes

Fish Alternatives The lemon anchovy butter would also be very good with grilled halibut, swordfish, or salmon steaks.

Variation Grilled Tuna with Sun-Dried-Tomato Basil Butter: Mix 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil, 3 chopped oil-packed or reconstituted sun-dried tomatoes, and a pinch each of salt and pepper into 4 tablespoons room-temperature butter. Use this mixture in place of the lemon anchovy butter.

Suggested Pairing

The trick here is to find a wine with enough body to go with the tuna but lots of acidity to stand up to the flavorful lemon anchovy butter. Try a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand or from California.