Advice Requested-Grilling Tuna Outdoors

[rickbern]

Looking for a little advice here...

I'm a lifelong apartment dweller, so I have limited experience with outdoor grilling. I'm going to Denver to make a rehearsal dinner for my nephew (Other - Post your Menus Here), his new wife and 60-70 of our nearest and dearest. Got some grill helpers who are loving and enthusiastic, nobody's a pro here.

I'm planning on making grilled tuna steaks. They seem easy to handle and are quick to cook. I wonder if I should put some grids from sheet pans on top of the grates of the grill to make the fish easier to handle? Also, (if the grid is a good idea) is it a good idea to take the grid off between batches and spray it with oil?

I think I'll get some slotted offset spatulas to work with the fish unless someone has a better idea.

Also, @Ochazuke got any great tips for miso marinated grilled tuna? If I did marinate the fish, should I serve it with a Mediterranean green sauce (charmoula) as well or is the miso enough flavor without any herbs on it.

Thanks all for any help you can offer!

 

[MarcelNL]

IME the hotter the griddle is the easier the tuna comes off without remains staying on the griddle, no oil needed (iMO it'll only burn off). It's a lot like searing meat in a non stick pan, if the pan is hot and enough AND stays hot enough (aka does not cool down due to too much in it or too little energy going into it) the crust that forms will auto- release...touch it too early and it's a mess, wait too long and the pin stripes are charred a bit too much and the fish cooks on the inside, I tend to err on the charring side for fear of ruining the piece but I'm slowly getting there(hard to find really good tuna over here)

What I do looks a lot like this on a good day; Perfect Grilled Tuna – A Couple Cooks

If the grill is hot enough it is easy, especially if you cook the outside keeping the inside raw. Cannot give you any hints for also cooking the inside, I have no experience doing that.

 

[Ochazuke]

Miso can burn pretty easily, especially on a grill. I’d say if you want miso flavor, either do it as a glaze near the end of cooking or as a sauce for after cooking.

If you’d adding charmoula though, I think that will be great! No need to fuss with the miso. My only suggestions might be to experiment with shio koji as a marinade. It tenderizes and removes bad “fishiness” while still letting the natural flavors shine.

 

[Ochazuke]

Also, how many people are eating tuna? If you call up the store ahead of time to buy a loin it’ll probably be cheaper and fresher. If it’s fewer than 20 people wanting tuna, this idea might be overkill though.

Regardless, I agree with @MarcelNL that keeping the inside raw at a hot temp is easy. Also tastier IMO. Tuna cooked all the through can get really tough and chewy.

 

[Bodine]

I really like my tuna steaks blackened. Cast iron skillet over charcoal or gas grill will work fine.
Steaks 1&1/4 to 1&1/2 thick, cook a quarter of an inch on each side.
Use melted butter to hold your seasonings in place, and to dip the tuna in at the table.

 

[coxhaus]

I like my tuna seasoned with coarse black pepper cooked in cast iron in oil or butter for a very short time. I don't really grill my tuna.

 

[rickbern]

Thanks all.@Ochazuke, just the kind of info I was hoping for. I have 70 people coming, i can’t imagine doing that in cast iron.

I’m thinking most people will have a piece of chicken and a piece of fish and I’m going to portion them in advance. Gonna give the grill guys a timer and set it to 2.5 minutes a side or so.

@MarcelNL, that link is helpful. Thanks. I still think it’s easier with this many people to portion them first though.

 

[MarcelNL]

sure with that many you need to prep everything or you go under, I have a bit of experience cooking for like 30-40 people and that was daunting when I started doing so. 70 sounds like one step further and will likely require careful planning and prep work (and enlisting help for the prep). For sure there are pro's here who handle 70 without lifting an eyebrow, so there should be experience you can tap into.

 

[coxhaus]

I smoked meat once for 125 people. I started at 5 am and worked my ass off all day. It was the last 4th of July party I did. I gave up after that. Every year for about 10 years I had a July 4th party with lots of wine. The party fun spread by word of mouth and it got bigger every year.

My small town is a BBQ town. I would buy meat from them and they would loan me a smoker which would fit in my drive way. I would go the night before and borrow the smoker using my truck. At 5 am I would build a fire and start heating the smoker. I would cook all day and drink wine. People would start coming over after lunch and staying until midnight or later. They brought dishes that would work with BBQ and lots of wine. I had a big 41-foot pool at the time so that was part of it to. We would go through a lot of BBQ, all kinds, brisket, sausage, ribs, goat, pork, whatever I came across that would BBQ. It was all good.

It started out as fun. But it got too big. Once we hit 125 people, I was doing nothing but working to solve problems and cooking.

So, I feel for you. Try to have fun. Drink a lot as it helps.

 

[rickbern]

I smoked meat once for 125 people. I started at 5 am and worked my ass off all day. It was the last 4th of July party I did. I gave up after that. Every year for about 10 years I had a July 4th party with lots of wine. The party fun spread by word of mouth and it got bigger every year.

My small town is a BBQ town. I would buy meat from them and they would loan me a smoker which would fit in my drive way. I would go the night before and borrow the smoker using my truck. At 5 am I would build a fire and start heating the smoker. I would cook all day and drink wine. People would start coming over after lunch and staying until midnight or later. They brought dishes that would work with BBQ and lots of wine. I had a big 41-foot pool at the time so that was part of it to. We would go through a lot of BBQ, all kinds, brisket, sausage, ribs, goat, pork, whatever I came across that would BBQ. It was all good.

It started out as fun. But it got too big. Once we hit 125 people, I was doing nothing but working to solve problems and cooking.

So, I feel for you. Try to have fun. Drink a lot as it helps.

Hopefully these kids get married once and done, not looking to turn this into an annual event!

 

[Michi]

@rickbern I'd be interested to get an experience report once it's all over. I've catered for up to 25 people in a domestic kitchen plus BBQ on the deck. It's a lot of work. The thought of having to deal with 70 people makes me tremble in my boots.

My fingers are crossed for you!

 

[rickbern]

Miso can burn pretty easily, especially on a grill. I’d say if you want miso flavor, either do it as a glaze near the end of cooking or as a sauce for after cooking.

If you’d adding charmoula though, I think that will be great! No need to fuss with the miso. My only suggestions might be to experiment with shio koji as a marinade. It tenderizes and removes bad “fishiness” while still letting the natural flavors shine.

For those interested in the shio koji concept, here’s a starting point. Doesn’t seem to be a lot of info on marinating except for poke. I’m assuming a half hour maximum?
https://www.japancentre.com/en/recipes/1293-seared-tuna-steak-with-shoyu-koji

 

[rickbern]

For those interested in the shio koji concept, here’s a starting point. Doesn’t seem to be a lot of info on marinating except for poke. I’m assuming a half hour maximum?
https://www.japancentre.com/en/recipes/1293-seared-tuna-steak-with-shoyu-koji

More, better info

https://www.seriouseats.com/shio-koji-marinade
https://www.justonecookbook.com/how-to-make-shio-koji/
Edit: This guy is talking about sous vide for 12 hours. Anybody know how altitude (Denver) affects fermentation?

https://homemade-sake-sushi.com/shio-koji.htm

 

[rickbern]

On the off chance anyone is still interested, this stuff is like magic. I’ve read either make your own or buy a brand with no alcohol

Small container is ready to roll, large one takes a week of fermentation. Made the best swordfish I ever tasted after letting that stuff sit on the surface for an hour

 

[Ochazuke]

I'm glad the recommendation worked out! Shio koji has been a game changer for so many people and has recently popped up in a lot of "New American" restaurants.

My hobbies are all about making my own natto and tofu, so I've been a koji fan for a while! It's a deep rabbit hole.

 

[Mikeltee]

If you plan to cover your grill with sheet pans you will raise your heat. This is how I used to clean my grills on the line in the past. 10min at full blast and they get white hot and burn everything off. For tuna, I'd cover in 50/50 poppy seed sesame seed mix, sear for 90 seconds on each side, plate them on a puddle of thick warm teriyaki and take a squeeze bottle of Wasabi cream to them. YUM

 

[rickbern]

If you plan to cover your grill with sheet pans you will raise your heat. This is how I used to clean my grills on the line in the past. 10min at full blast and they get white hot and burn everything off. For tuna, I'd cover in 50/50 poppy seed sesame seed mix, sear for 90 seconds on each side, plate them on a puddle of thick warm teriyaki and take a squeeze bottle of Wasabi cream to them. YUM

Thanks mike. I wasn’t thinking of using sheet pans at all, I’m thinking of using the wire grid racks that fit into them. They’re stainless steel with the wires on maybe 3/4” spacing. I somehow thought the tighter grid density might somehow make things easier.

 

[rickbern]

@Ochazuke i switched my plan (what else is new?). I’m going to roast some whole sides of salmon in the oven at 450. Can I still slather it in shio koji? Is overnight too long?

I wish I could invite you to the dinner, you’ve been so helpful!

 

[Ochazuke]

@Ochazuke i switched my plan (what else is new?). I’m going to roast some whole sides of salmon in the oven at 450. Can I still slather it in shio koji? Is overnight too long?

I wish I could invite you to the dinner, you’ve been so helpful!

I've never had a catering job where the plans didn't change.

Shio koji and salmon is a match made in heaven. Overnight will probably make it a little salty but not overwhelmingly so. You'll probably need more than an hour if you're going to coat the whole salmon. I'd aim for 4-5 hours.

Portioning cooked salmon that's been marinating in shio koji isn't hard to do, but it is very flakey. Just a heads up that you probably won't get beautiful, instagrammable portions. If you don't mind a little prep work, making kirimi is really easy, makes a nice presentation, and cooks a lot faster than a side of salmon (think 6-8 minutes on a broiler setting). Plus you can give it a couple trial runs before the real deal.

I like a kirimi style cut because it cooks evenly. The idea is just to cut at an angle to accommodate the difference in the height of salmon side (i.e. the part closer to the tail will be cut more horizontally biased and the part near the center will be more vertically cut; they should all come out roughly the same size. The classic center cut can work, but because of the differences in width it can often cook unevenly.

 

[rickbern]

Ehh, you scared me off with portioning the salmon so I decided to put the shio koji on the chicken thighs. I left them fo about two hours and then put a spice rub on them and we grilled them in pouring rain. Came out deliciously! I love this stuff!

thanks for everyone’s help and support!