The Best Seared Ahi Tuna

This super simple seared tuna is one of our all-time favorite recipes ever! It is a light and refreshing ahi tuna steak recipe that you are going to LOVE enjoying by itself or add it to your favorite tuna recipe. Personally, we love serving it on a salad with a sesame ginger dressing! That umami flavor from the soy sauce and toasted sesame seeds just pair perfectly together in this easy recipe. Looks fancy but is such an easy dinner idea, a fun weekend lunch, or a cute date night at home!

What You Will Need

• raw ahi tuna steaks: ahi tuna is known for its firm texture and beautifully mild flavor. Feel free to reach for a sushi grade or sashimi grade (read more about those labels below) of either yellowfin tuna or bigeye tuna (both types of ahi tuna).
• salt and pepper: ahi tuna has such a mild flavor, so we don’t want to over-season them. But they definitely need a little salt and pepper to bring them to life.
• sesame seeds: you will press these into the ahi tuna right before you sear them in a hot pan.
• oil: I generally reach for the olive oil, but avocado oil works just fine here too.

Does Seared Tuna Need to be Sushi Grade

In short – most likely, yes.  But, there isn’t an official “sushi-grade” that fish can earn by meeting certain standards.  Some grocery stores will sell fresh fish with that label, meaning that it is the best, highest-quality fish the store is offering and they would feel safe eating it raw.  Parasitic fish (like salmon) are required to be frozen (at a temp much lower than your own freezer can provide) to kill any parasites before being consumed raw. Additionally, tuna is actually graded by wholesalers. There is a Grade 1, which is the best grade tuna you can get and is, most likely what your local grocery store would consider “sushi-grade ahi tuna”. Go to a reputable store and check out this list of questions to ask from The Kitchn to help find high-quality tuna.  It’s also important to use it right away after purchasing and make sure your cutting board and utensils are super clean!

How To Make Seared Ahi Tuna

The first steps to making this delicious ahi tuna recipe are to make sure your tuna steaks are fully thawed and patted dry with clean paper towels.

Best Way To Serve Pan Seared Tuna Steaks

Now that you have this perfectly cooked tuna steak, what’s next? Here are some of our favorite ways to enjoy it:

• Serve with your favorite dipping sauce – simply cut eat tuna steak into thin slices and serve with a small dish of soy sauce, coconut aminos, or tamari sauce!
• Make a slaw or salad – we love this Sesame Ginger Slaw or on top of a Poke Salad.
• Tacos – serve on your favorite flour tortillas or corn tortillas with some mango pineapple salsa for a light and refreshing dinner option!
• Guacamole – create a delicious chip dip by serving sliced tuna over some chunky guacamole.
• Poke Bowl – build a tuna poke bowl with a bed of white rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice, sushi rice, or jasmine rice and the tuna on top with all your favorite toppings!
• Side dish – and if you are just looking for a simple side dish recipe, we highly suggest some roasted broccolini or braised bok choy.

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