Recipes Pan-Roasted Peppered Tuna with White Beans Be the first to rate & review! Use best-quality fish and cook it so the center remains rare. Chef Traci Des Jardins likes to buy her tuna in Japanese markets, where it is also sold for sushi.Plus: More Seafood Recipes and Tips By Traci Des Jardins Traci Des Jardins F&W Star Chef » See All F&W Chef Superstars Restaurants: Jardinière, Mijita Cocina Mexicana (San Francisco) Recipe you’re most famous for? Scallops with truffle mashed potatoes. I think it’s something rather dated, but people love that dish. What was the first dish you ever cooked by yourself? I started baking when I was like three, with my mom. So the first thing I made was chocolate chip cookies. I grew up in a rural town in the Central Valley, and I got very bored in high school, so by that time I took up cooking as a hobby. We had subscriptions to all the food magazines and I would drive 45 minutes to Fresno to get ingredients, and that’s when I got really interested in cooking. Who is your food mentor? Joachim Splichal. I started working for him when I was 17. I think the lessons were really the basic tenets of executing great food—flavor balance, seasoning, taste, taste, taste. Favorite cookbook of all time? I think the cookbook that I’ve used my whole life that I still use is probably the Joy of Cooking. There’s a reference point for almost everything in there. And it’s encyclopedic. I still pull it out once in a while and check, how long do you cook an 18-pound turkey? Is there a culinary skill you wish you were better at? If I had to do it all over again, restart my career, I probably would have studied Japanese food rather than French. What is the best-bang-for-the-buck ingredient? Good olive oil, you get a lot of mileage out of that. What is your current food obsession? Tacos. I’ve been kind of a traditionalist when it comes to Mexican food, but now I’m thinking maybe I should expand my horizons. You have to start with a good tortilla and balance crunch, acid, salt. The best one I’ve had recently I made at home: duck and black mole with duck cracklings. That was pretty amazing. Favorite souvenir? When I was in Paris years ago I got this crazy thing that was probably a spice holder. It’s a wooden structure with six little drawers at the top and six larger drawers below it. The drawers are made out of glass with a handle on it, and a pour at the end. It’s just totally amazing. I use it for salts and I’m always terrified I’m going to break one of the glass inserts because I would never be able to replace it. If you were facing an emergency and could only take one backpack of supplies, what would you bring? Coffee beans and a coffeemaker. It’s pretty important for me to have a great cup of coffee to start every day; I would be greatly hindered by not having that. How do you make coffee at home? I have a collection of espresso machines. La Pavoni is my first love, and I have a machine that I’ve actually had since I was 16. I keep it in shape, it’s my baby. It’s sort of my backup one if another one has to be repaired. I also have a subscription to Craft Coffee, and they send me three different coffees every month. I love the variety, and you get to check out new roasters from across the country. Favorite snack? Salsa and chips are my downfall to fitness. Really good chips—there’s nothing better. I have to keep them away from me. Hidden talent? Skiing. I probably ski about 20-30 days a year, which is a lot if you don’t live in the mountains.1995 Best New Chef Bio Won Best New Chef at: Rubicon, San Francisco Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on March 27, 2015 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Yield: 4 Ingredients 1 cup dried small white beans, picked over and rinsed 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 onion, finely chopped 1 carrot, cut into 1/3-inch dice 1 celery rib, cut into 1/3-inch dice 1 teaspoon thyme 1/2 teaspoon oregano 1 bay leaf 4 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth 3 red or yellow bell peppers 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley Salt and freshly ground pepper 2 tablespoons vegetable oil Four 6-ounce tuna steaks, cut about 2 inches thick Coarsely cracked black pepper Directions In a medium bowl, cover the beans with 4 cups of water and let soak overnight. Alternatively, cover the beans with water and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and let stand for 1 hour. Drain and rinse the beans. Melt the butter in a large nonreactive saucepan. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook over moderate heat for 4 minutes. Add the beans, thyme, oregano, bay leaf and chicken stock, cover partially and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the beans are tender, about 1 hour; some liquid should remain. Roast the bell peppers over a gas flame or under the broiler until charred. Transfer to a bowl, cover and let steam for 15 minutes. Peel the peppers, discarding the cores, ribs and seeds. Cut the peppers into 1/2-inch dice and add them to the beans along with the olive oil and vinegar. Cook over moderate heat until warmed through. Stir in the rosemary and parsley and season with salt and ground pepper. Preheat the oven to 450°. Heat the vegetable oil in a large, heavy-bottomed ovenproof skillet. Season one side of the tuna with salt and a generous amount of the cracked bell pepper. Add the tuna to the skillet and cook over high heat until just browned, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the skillet to the oven and cook for about 6 minutes, or until the tuna feels firm but gives slightly; it should still be pink in the center. Spoon the beans onto plates. Set the tuna steaks on top, peppered side up, and serve. Suggested Pairing A peppered tuna steak is almost meatlike in texture and flavor, so a rich, fruity red with medium body is called for. Try a Merlot from Napa Valley. Rate it Print