Yet another meal and another post inspired by fellow bloggers, two in this case. The idea to try tuna sous-vide came from A Single Serving, who left a comment on my sous-vide page. He mentioned tuna confit, which is not what I tried this time around (but I will). Instead, I cooked the tuna medium rare at 42C/108F. The idea to grill avocado came from Richard of REMCooks, as well as the idea to combine avocado and tuna. I made this for lunch, but it could also be a nice appetizer for two. If you don’t have sous-vide equipment, you could use a ziploc bag and stock pot as a good substitute (that will however require some attention to monitor the temperature) or simply serve the tuna raw.
You may now be thinking that I lost it. Grilling avocado? I had never thought of this, but I trust Richard and he’s right: it’s nice and a great way to eat an avocado that is not yet fully ripe. I was worried the avocado would ‘melt’, but that is not the case at all. The sous-vide tuna turned out very nice, with more flavor than rare tuna. I really liked the combination of flavors and textures, and the chile flakes made a big difference in this dish. Here’s what I did…
Ingredients
Lunch for 1 or appetizer for 2
200 grams (7 oz) fresh tuna (sashimi grade)
1 avocado (does not have to be fully ripe, but not stone hard either)
4 vine tomatoes
green part of 2 green onions
fresh basil
1 lime
salt
chile flakes
extra virgin olive oil
good balsamic vinegar
Preparation
Cut the tuna into cubes.
Zest the lime (I only used about half of the zest).
Combine tuna with 3 Tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice, lime zest, salt, and chile flakes.
Put the tuna in a ziploc bag and use the water displacement method to seal it with as little air as possible.
Cook sous-vide for 30-60 minutes at 42C/108F.
Chop the tomatoes. Thinly slice the green of the green onions.
Cut lengthwise along the pit of the avocado. Twist the avocado to separate the halves. Remove the pit. Rub the sides with olive oil.
Grill the avocado for 3-4 minutes on a hot grill or grill pan, turning them 90 degrees halfway to get a nice grill pattern.
Combine the cooked tuna with the juices from the bag and the green onions. Toss to mix.
Arrange the avocado halves on the tomatoes. Sprinkle the tomatoes with some fresh basil. Season lightly with salt and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.
Stuff the avocado halves with the tuna mixture and drizzle with good balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with chile flakes. Garnish with basil and lime.
Stefan's Gourmet Blog 
Very nice, Stefan, and thanks for the shoutout. In time, I’m going to turn you into a chile head. 😀
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Thanks Richard. I did think of Baby Lady when I tasted the tuna with the avocado and thought it needed more chile flakes. You can read tomorrow about how much of a chile head I’m becoming…
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looking forward to it. 🙂
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Sounds great, Stefan! Here in Texas we not only grill avocados, but deep fry them too! Try the grilled avocados in your guacamole. I’m really enjoying your recipes–keep up the good work!
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Thanks so much for the nice compliment! Deep fried avocados, oh my… I may just have to try smoking an avacado 🙂
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It would be hard to keep lit, though.
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Do you mean lighting the avocado itself?
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Great presentation … I think topping grilled avocado halves filled with some type of small shrimp preparation would lovely nice too!
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That’s a classic!
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I’ve had avocado salad with shrimp … doing it grilled is new to me.
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You’re absolutely right: grilled it’s not a classic.
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I think we ought to buy you a ten gallon hat Stefan. You are becoming more Texan than the Texans themselves.
Great recipe.
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The hat’s not such a bad idea because it’ll shield me from the sun when I go to Down Under…
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Thanks for another great looking sous-vide recipe. Must try it while the available avocados are so fabulous.
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Thanks! 🙂
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Favourite ingredients prepared in a totally different way! Have never combined fresh tuna and avocado, have never grilled the latter . . . Have to use a stockpot also but am game to try over the weekend . . . thank you for making this exciting 🙂 !
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Great! Look forward to hearing how it turned out…
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Fabulous post! I had heard about grilling avocados and now seeing your post I know how to go about it.
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Thanks for visiting and leaving such a nice comment!
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Tuna and avocado + a little lime?! I’m all over this one Stefan! Bedankt!
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Great challenge, really interesting to see what both you and Conner did with the ingredients.
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Thanks for visiting, following, and taking the time to leave such a nice comment!
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Gorgeous, Stefan – recipe and photos.
Avocado, lime and tuna are a great combination. I love the way you served it! I can taste the warm, smoky and creamy avocado with the bright citrus, tart onion and rich tuna. You should check out this recipe (a favorite of ours) since you are also a fan of the tuna-
avocado duo:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/pan-seared-tuna-with-avocado-soy-ginger-and-lime-recipe/index.html
Great post!
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Hi Shanna, thanks for another nice comment. Did you know that you have become the most commenting visitor on my blog? Thanks so much for all the time you take in leaving me nice messages.
I checked out the recipe and it looks good, except for the big amount of cilantro 😉
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The most commenting visitor? Oh, my! 🙂 Well, this recipe looks great and worthy of comments!
Oh, yes – you can always use parsley instead. It is very flavorful dish that utilizes tuna and avocado – and I love the multicultural influences.
Keep up the great work. Love your blog.
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