Grilled Albacore With Yogurt-Dill Sauce on a Bed of Arugula

By Martha Rose Shulman

Published September 25, 2011

  • Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
2 hours 15 minutes
Rating
5(75)
Comments
Read comments

This is based on a recipe for red mullet from “Classic Turkish Cooking” by Ghillie Basan. Red mullet isn’t so easy to come by in the United States, and albacore works well here. In the authentic Turkish dish, the red mullet is marinated in a mixture of onion juice and lemon juice with bay leaf. This step is optional; it tenderizes the fish and adds terrific flavor, but grilled albacore is nice enough on its own. Dill is the traditional herb for this recipe, but mint is very nice as well.

Featured in: Yogurt: Much More Than a ‘Health Food’

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

    Subscribe

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

    or to print this recipe.

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:Serves 4

FOR THE OPTIONAL MARINADE

  • 2 large onions

  • Salt to taste

  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

  • 4 bay leaves, broken up

FOR THE FISH

  • 4 albacore steaks, about 6 ounces each

  • Salt

  • freshly ground pepper

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (omit if the fish has been marinated)

FOR THE SERVING

  • 2 garlic cloves, halved, green shoots removed

  • Generous pinch of salt

  • ½ cup thick Greek-style or drained yogurt

  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

  • 2 to 4 tablespoons finely chopped dill or mint

  • Salt

  • freshly ground pepper

  • 1 bag baby arugula, preferably the wild variety

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

15 grams carbs; 71 milligrams cholesterol; 401 calories; 10 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 17 grams fat; 3 grams fiber; 930 milligrams sodium; 48 grams protein; 7 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    If marinating the fish: Quarter the onions and place in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add a generous pinch of salt and pulse the onions until puréed and watery. Line a strainer with a double thickness of cheesecloth and dump in the puréed onions. Take up the edges of the cheesecloth and squeeze out the onion juice (you can also use a cloth kitchen towel for this). Discard the pulp. Add to the onion juice the lemon juice, olive oil and bay leaves. Place the fish steaks in the marinade, turn over a few times, cover the bowl and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours, basting or turning the fish from time to time.

  2. Step 2

    Heat a hot charcoal or gas grill, or a grill pan or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. If you have not marinated the fish, simply salt and pepper and brush with olive oil. Combine the yogurt, garlic and lemon juice in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir in the dill or mint. Set aside.

  3. Step 3

    Arrange the arugula on a large serving platter.

  4. Step 4

    Grill the fish on each side for 2 to 4 minutes, depending on how rare you like it. Brush the unturned side with marinade (or just olive oil) before turning it over. Transfer the fish to the platter, placing the steaks on top of the arugula. Spoon the yogurt sauce over the fish and arugula, and serve.

Tip

  • Advance preparation: You can make both the marinade and the yogurt sauce several hours ahead of time. They become more pungent as they sit.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

5 out of 5
75 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

There aren’t any comments yet. Be the first to leave one.
REM

Incredibly easy to prepare, especially if you skip the marinade, which I did because I used bluefin steaks and they needed no embellishment. However, I believe the marinade will add dimension to this dish. So next time I will use a fish more closely resembling the red mullet mentioned in the intro, and I will definitely marinate it.

Jill

Loved this! The sauce was delicious! ( Although I was wondering re:the garlic. Didn’t say to chop. So I roasted and chopped. Added a tiny bit of raw chopped, too.) Added a few roasted brussel sprouts, too.Nice to find something delicious and easy!

Abbey

Tuna filets were pretty thick so my husband followed the higher end of the recommended cooking time. Came out tough and like canned tuna, all gray throughout. Even with the marinade. Didn’t even finish it. Dill yogurt sauce was good. If you make this recipe please do a quick sear on each side, 1-2 min max so it still has some color in the center and remains edible.

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

or to save this recipe.