As a kid, I loved my mom’s pot roast, a once a week meal for a family of six. A big hunk of beef chuck, generously sprinkled with salt and pepper, potatoes, carrots and onions alongside, all roasted until the meat was fork-tender and the onions and carrots nearly caramelized. “Greasy pot roast,” we called it, because so much fat cooked off the beef.
The pot roast was served with ketchup and mom’s home-made “chili sauce,” a Midwestern-style tomato-green pepper-onion condiment. Any leftover meat she used to make “barbecue,” shredded beef in tomato sauce, piled on hamburger buns. (At that stage of life, I had yet to sample tacos.)
Feeding nostalgia, I have tried to replicate my mother’s pot roast. But Spanish beef—ternera—just doesn’t do it. I wind up with dry and stringy meat. For juiciness I’ve had better luck with pork shoulder, especially if from ibérico pigs.
But here’s another option—pot-roasted fresh tuna. It’s larded with strips of bacon which help to keep it juicy; slow-cooked in an onion-rich sauce with lots of olive oil, and carefully monitored so it doesn’t overcook and become dry. Unlike a beef pot roast, this one needs only about 30 minutes to cook.
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| Meaty tuna is larded with strips of bacon and braised with onions and Sherry. |
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| Serve the onion gravy with pot-roasted tuna. |
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| Cook tuna to medium--still pink in the center--so it stays juicy. |
Pot-Roasted Tuna
Atún Mechado
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| Fresh, uncooked tuna. |
It’s easier to push the strips of bacon or salt pork (tocino) through the tuna if the bacon is partially frozen first.
Fresh tuna needs to be soaked in cold water. If the tuna has been frozen, do not soak it, but rinse and pat dry.
Overcooking makes for dry tuna. Braise it only long enough to cook it until pink—medium—in the center (125ºF on an instant-read thermometer).
Serves 6.
1 slice thick-cut bacon (1 ounce)
2 pounds tuna
8 cloves garlic
½ teaspoon coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Flour for coating the tuna
Salt
1/3 cup olive oil
2 medium onions, cut in julienne slices
½ cup fino Manzanilla or Sherry
1 cup fish stock or water
2 bay leaves
8 peppercorns
1 clove
Chopped parsely to garnish
Cut the slice of bacon lengthwise into 3 or 4 strips. Place them on a saucer and place in the freezer to firm them, 30 minutes.
Remove any scales from the tuna, but leave the skin on. Place the tuna in a deep bowl and cover with cold water. Let it soak 30 minutes. Drain and pat the tuna dry.
Crush 2 cloves of garlic in a mortar with the coarse salt. Add pepper, finely chopped parsley and lemon juice.
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| Poke a hole in tuna with chopstick. |
Use a skewer or chopstick to poke 3 or 4 holes through the piece of tuna. Push some of the garlic-parsley mixture into the slots. Then push through a strip of bacon so that it is threaded all the way through the thickness of the tuna.
Dredge the tuna in flour and pat off the excess. Heat the oil in a heavy pot or deep skillet. Brown the tuna on moderate heat, turning to brown all sides. Remove the tuna.
Add the onions to the oil in the pan. Lightly crush the remaining 6 cloves of garlic without peeling them. Add them to the onions. Sauté 8 minutes until onions are beginning to brown. Add the fino Manzanilla and cook 3 minutes until the alcohol is cooked off. Add the fish stock, bay leaves, peppercorns and clove.
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| It's easier to brown the tuna and onions in a skillet, then transfer to a heavy, lidded pot to finish cooking. |
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and return the tuna to the pan. (Or, transfer the onions and liquid to a heavy pot and place the tuna in it.)
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| Tuna braises in heavy pot. |
Cover tightly and cook on low heat 10 minutes.
Turn the piece of tuna so another side is down and cook 5 minutes more. Turn again for 5 minutes or until the tuna is cooked medium (still a little pink in the center, internal temperature of 125ºF), about 25 minutes total cooking time.
Remove the tuna to a cutting board and let it rest 5 minutes. Use a slicing knife to cut thin slices.
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Pot-roasted tuna, ready to serve, hot or cold. Another sort of pot roast: Larded Pork Pot Roast. More recipes with fresh tuna: |
I've never seen that before - it looks fantastic!
ReplyDeleteMad Dog: Typical of Cádiz and Huelva. Give it a try--just take care not to overcook the tuna, or it becomes dry.
DeleteHave to smile as pot roasts have never been 'my thing' ! Remember being a little surprised that on visits to private homes in the States this indeed seemed a favourite dish . . . geography, cultural background - still do not prepare it at home :) ! And the tuna I usually eat is still almost swimming !! But truly like your tuna dish . . . like all the sauce ingredients and the fact the fish will still be pink in the centre . . . this recipe certainly is on the way to the kitchen . . . shall report back . . .
ReplyDeleteEha: I resist pot roasting tuna, as it is so good simply grilled rare or, as you mention, almost still swimming. But, if you take care not to overcook it, it is sublime. Beats beef.
DeleteI had to laugh, we had pot roast every week in our family of 6, too, when I was a kid in California. I think my mom used the recipe from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook. My mom still has that tattered, food stained book in her kitchen, although at 93, she doesn't do much cooking anymore. Thank you for the recipe, Janet!
ReplyDeleteCurran: And, have you tried to make mom's pot roast with Spanish beef? Glad you like the tuna recipe.
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