"Tuna in Olive Oil" Recipes Needed

My husband is a pescetarian, we live overseas, and I'm running out different weeknight meal ideas with frozen shellfish and the few reliably good fresh fish options that are available. I often make a pasta salad with tuna in olive oil, grilled artichoke hearts, olives and roasted tomatoes, but would love some other ideas. Noodle casseroles are out; I can't find noodles here made with free-range chicken eggs. (Note: Husband is well worth all the effort, but I draw the line at making noodles and then putting them in a casserole dish.)

Melusine
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10 Comments

Exbruxelles
Exbruxelles January 28, 2017
Salad Nicoise, tuna burgers--or tuna cakes if you want to skip the bread, tuna quesadillas (tuna, salsa, green onions and cheese) and, of course, a classic tuna melt sandwich.
 
NYCookiestorm
NYCookiestorm January 24, 2017
Pasta Mia in DC used to make a "Fusilli Tonno"
-- which is pasta (whatever you make) with tomato sauce, tuna & green olives. It works best with tuna in oil. Basically tomato simmered with garlic and green olives and pepper flakes, then add the tuna and poach a little longer to soften. DELICIOUS.
 
Nancy W.
Nancy W. January 23, 2017
This is our favorite. It's one of the first recipes I added to my favorites here... https://food52.com/recipes/14030-first-night-in-florence-spaghetti
 
Bevi
Bevi January 28, 2017
Yep - I agree - this recipe is a Winner!
 
HalfPint
HalfPint January 23, 2017
I love this curry tuna pasta from Wanda Tornabene's 100 Ways to Be Pasta:

I only have a general outline since I don't have the recipe in soft copy. Take a generous 1/2 cup butter (1 stick), saute thinly sliced onions, 2 tsp curry powder, 1/2 tsp red chili flakes, for about 1-2 minutes on med heat. Add flaked tuna and stir until heated through and the tuna breaks up finely, ~3-5 minutes. Add hot cooked pasta and toss to coat the pasta with the sauce. Taste and add more seasoning if needed. I've made this with 1/2 stick of butter (1/4 cup) and it still tastes fantastic.
 
creamtea
creamtea January 23, 2017
Are you talking about fresh, or tinned tuna? You can make a delicious romesco with toasted hazelnuts, garlic, olive oil and roasted red pepper. Typically served with escarole, oil-cured black olives, hard boiled eggs and anchovies and tinned tuna like Ortiz which is so delicious. But romesco is very versatile and if red peppers are available (I know some will say it's winter, so it's not exactly seasonal) you can use it with fresh or tinned tuna. You could add jarred piquillo peppers if available. You could do a mezze-type platter of individual ingredients available in-season (maybe include some small boiled potatoes).
 
aargersi
aargersi January 23, 2017
This is along the lines of your pasta but - in A New Way To Dinner - Merrill had a pasta twirls, arugula and green onion pesto, tuna in oil and parmesan dish that I can't stop eating. I often add extra arugula leaves and halved cherry tomatoes as well.
I love this salad, and a warm version of it works well also:
https://food52.com/recipes/6965-tuna-and-white-bean-salad-with-heirloom-tomatoes
 
MMH
MMH January 23, 2017
A simple white bean salad with tuna in olive oil is always good.
 
Nancy
Nancy January 23, 2017
I've got a recipe where the tuna is poached in olive oil. Will send link or details later from home files.
 
Nancy
Nancy January 23, 2017
Can't find my old recipe (from about 20 years ago, maybe in New York Times).
What I remember is first flavoring (a lot of) olive oil with rosemary, then slow-braising or poaching fresh tuna in it. Remove, serve. Strain the oil for another use or two.

And there are lots more recipes since mid 90s:
https://www.google.ca/search?q=tuna+slow+braised+in+rosemary+oil&espv=2&biw=1517&bih=692&source=lnt&tbs=cdr%3A1%2Ccd_min%3Aseptember+1_2+1995%2Ccd_max%3Aaugust+31_2+2000&tbm=#q=olive+oil+poached+tuna+recipe
Last, here is one from Food and Wine Magazine that uses the same method, but uses fennel, chile, orange for flavoring:
http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/oil-poached-tuna-fennel-and-orange
 
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