This Grilled Tuna Salad is packed full of flavour that makes for a fantastic summer lunch full of wonderful Mediterranean flavours.
Sweet flat beans and mini Roma tomatoes, the piquant caperberries and olives and summer’s favourite herb – basil.
You may like to serve this salad alongside a seafood barbecue or serve it with some crusty bread for a light and delicious summer lunch.
More on caperberries
While capers are the plant’s flower buds, the berries are its fruit. They are picked and packed with their stems
They are tender to bite with a texture similar to a pickle or olive and contain tiny seeds that give a very subtle crunch
Caperberries are less acidic and have a milder
You will find the best caper berries are grown on the Italian island of Pantelleria, not far from Sicily. Its climate is arid and its rocky landscape makes it ideal for cultivating the caper plant.
Ingredients
For the tuna…
- 450 grams tuna steaks, fresh
- 2 tbsps olive oil (extra virgin)
- 2 tbsps parsley, fresh (chopped)
- 1 tsp oregano (dried)
- Sea salt and cracked black pepper
For the salad…
- 400 grams flat beans
- 250 grams Mini Roma tomatoes
- ½ cup small basil leaves, chopped
- ⅓ cup pitted black olives chopped
- ⅓ cup caper berries stems removed
For the Italian dressing..
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 2 tbsps white wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp lemon juice, fresh
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 tbsps fresh parsley chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh basil chopped
- ¼ tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp oregano, dried Greek *
For the garnish…
- 2 tbsps Large basil leaves
- 1-2 tbsps caper berries
Instructions
To grill your tuna steaks…
- Heat a non-stick fry pan on medium-high heat. Brush the tuna steaks lightly with oil, season, then sprinkle with the oregano and parsley leaves.
- Put the tuna steaks into your fry pan and allow to cook for 2-3 mins, depending on how thick the tuna steaks are. Turn the tuna over and cook for a further 2-3 mins on the other side. Look at the side of the tuna to see how far through it is cooked, but remember it will keep cooking for a short while when taken off the heat.
To make your salad…
- Wash the beans, top, tail and string them, them then cut them on the diagonal in 2.5cm pieces.
- Boil a large pot of salted water, place the flat beans into the boiling water and cook for approximately 5 minutes (they sould be cooked al dente). While the beans are cooking, fill a large bowl with ice water. Drain the beans in a colander and submerge in the ice water to retain their colour. Then transfer to a mixing bowl when cold.
- Wash your mini Roma tomatoes and cut them in half, add to your mixing bowl along with the caper berries and olives.
- Flake your tuna and add to your mixing bowl.
- Wash your basil leaves carefully, pat dry with a towel and add to your bowl.
To make your Italian dressing…
- Place all your dressing ingredients in a glass jar and shake until emulsified.
Putting it all together…
- Season your salad, pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently until well combined. Taste and adjust seasonings according to your taste.
- Arrange the salad in a large salad bowl, place the caper berries and basil leaves on top and serve.
Notes
- It is well worth the effort to make a trip to your Greek deli and buy a bag of dried Greek oregano, the taste is incomparable to what you find in your supermarket.
Leave a Reply