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It’s hard to think of a simpler, fresher and more bursting-with-flavor dish than Grilled Tuna Steaks served with an umami-loaded sesame soy dipping sauce! I grill ahi tuna over high heat, creating a rare center and beautiful grill marks, just like you see in upscale restaurants. As home cooks, we may feel a little intimidated to serve fish rare, assuming that only restaurant chefs can master this technique, but it’s surprisingly easy and fast.
The sesame soy dipping sauce with pleasantly spicy fresh ginger doubles as a marinade, saving you a few steps. All you need are a few simple ingredients and a couple of high-quality tuna steaks, ideally yellowfin tuna (often marketed as ahi tuna). However, this recipe works equally well with other types of tuna, such as: bluefin, bonito/skipjack, bigeye or albacore.
Table of Contents
Ingredients to make Grilled Tuna Steaks
- Fresh Tuna Steaks: Yellowfin/ahi, bluefin, bigeye, skipjack or albacore work, although albacore is a little drier. Frozen tuna can be as high-quality as fresh if you can’t easily get fresh.
- Soy Sauce: Regular or low sodium soy sauce. Here is my favorite brand!
- Unseasoned Rice Vinegar: Be sure to use unseasoned rice vinegar, not the seasoned version that contains added sugar and salt.
- Honey: Your favorite variety.
- Green Onion: Look for a smooth, firm, bright green onion.
- Toasted Sesame Oil: While plain sesame oil has very little color or flavor, toasted sesame oil has a deep amber color and a nutty, toasty aroma and flavor.
- Fresh Ginger: Look for a plump fresh ginger hand with smooth, shiny skin.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic bulbs should be plump and firm with smooth, silvery skin.
- Olive Oil: Use whatever variety you have on hand – extra virgin olive oil isn’t essential here.
- Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Is your tuna steak ok to serve rare or raw?
You might be concerned about serving raw or rare tuna at home, not knowing if it’s fresh enough. It’s an important concern and one that isn’t regulated by the FDA, despite grocery store signage claiming ‘sushi grade’ or ‘sashimi grade’ (here is a great article if you want to read about this in-depth). However, you can find fresh, high-quality fish to serve at home, and it’s easier than you might think. It’s key to buy from a reputable fishmonger and here are some things to look for:
- Deeply red or pink tuna steaks (not brown) that are moist, shiny, and nearly translucent, particularly if you plan to serve it rare or raw (as in this Tuna Tartare or Ahi Tuna Salad). Avoid tuna with discoloration, or that looks soft and mushy.
- Tuna steaks should smell of fresh sea-air; avoid those with a fishy odor.
- If you don’t live near a coast where fresh fish is readily available, frozen tuna can work just as well, provided the tuna was frozen immediately in an industrial flash freezer onboard the fishing boat.
5 Recipe Tips
- Ask questions: Don’t hesitate to ask your fishmonger questions about the tuna — was it sustainably caught, from where, how fresh it is, etc. Ideally, your fishmonger will cut steaks to order from the whole loin.
- Check the color: Look for deep red tuna, but make sure it hasn’t been treated with carbon monoxide, a practice some processors use to achieve a dark red color.
- Grill hot and fast: Grill steaks over high heat to keep the center rare while achieving beautiful sear marks.
- Adjust for doneness: If you prefer your tuna steaks well done, just grill them for an additional 2 to 3 minutes per side.
- Marinate briefly: You can skip the marinating if you’re short on time, but if you do marinate, only do so for 20-30 minutes. Longer will ultimately “cook” the fish, as in ceviche.
This restaurant-quality Grilled Tuna Steaks recipe works for both busy weeknights since it’s so easy and requires minimal prep work, but is impressive enough to serve guests! If you want to serve a simple Asian-themed meal, Grilled Bok Choy or Chinese Cucumber Salad and steamed rice are the perfect accompaniments.
More Grilled Fish and Seafood
How to Grill Tuna Steaks
Step 1: Whisk together dipping sauce ingredients (soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, sesame oil, ginger, and garlic).
Step 2: Preheat grill to high. Rinse and dry tuna steaks then rub all sides with oil and season with salt and pepper.
Step 3: Grill tuna steaks until seared on the outside and rare in the middle, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to cutting board and thinly slice tuna across the grain.
Grilled Tuna Steaks
Video
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
- 2 ahi tuna steaks about 1 pound
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- sesame seeds to taste
- thinly sliced green onion to taste
Instructions
- Make dipping sauce. In a medium bowl whisk together soy sauce, rice vinegar, and honey until honey dissolves. Whisk in sesame oil, ginger, and garlic until emulsified. Leave at room temperature or refrigerate if desired. (recipe note #1)
- Preheat a gas grill (or charcoal grill) to high. (recipe note #2)
- Rinse tuna steaks and pat dry with paper towels. Rub all sides of tuna with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill tuna 2 minutes per side, until seared on the outside and rare in the center. (If you prefer a cooked center, cook an additional ~2 minutes per side.) Transfer tuna to cutting board. With a thin, sharp knife, thinly slice tuna across the grain (1/4 to 1/2-inch thick slices). Sprinkle with sesame seeds and sliced green onion. Serve with dipping sauce.
Notes
- If you prefer marinated fish, double the dipping sauce recipe and marinate the rinsed and dried tuna steaks for 20 to 30 minutes in 1/2 of the sauce before grilling. Serve the remaining sauce alongside for dipping.
- As an optional step to prevent sticking, brush grill grates with a high heat neutral or vegetable oil just before you add steaks to the grill.
- If desired, divide dipping sauce among 4 small bowls for serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Wife was away, so I was in charge of preparing dinner. Had everything on hand which was a bonus. Just shopped for tuna. Dip easy to prepare with clear/complete ingredient list and instructions. Thanks for publishing this. It is now my go to meal!
My pleasure, Howard! I’m so glad you’re enjoying this and it’s so kind of you to come back and let me know!
First time cooking tuna. Your recipe made it easy and it came out perfect
That’s wonderful to hear, Patti! Thank you for coming back to let me know.
This is the third time I tried to cook Tuna, All other recipes had me cooking the tuna much too long. This was perfect. Will do again soon.
That’s so great to hear, Cindy! Thank you for coming back to let me know.
Loved the recipe one correction should Tuna shown is Bluefin. Yellowfin Tuna is not Sushi grade nor does it look pink when seared. Bluefin is Grades above Yellowfin
Hi there, Gary. I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! The seared tuna pictured is Yellowfin Ahi Tuna that I bought from my local fishmonger – it’s a species often used for sushi.
T
Really good and so easy to throw together. Will keep this one to use again.
So glad you enjoyed it, Judy! Thank you for coming back to let me know.
Fabulous. Prepared just like the recipe and whole family loved it. We will definitely do this again, no changes needed.
That’s wonderful to hear CoachDave! Thank you for coming back to let me know.
What a beautiful plate! Ahi tuna is probably my favorite fish, and prepared like this, it’s such a hit. Like being at a restaurant, indeed. 🙂 ~Valentina
It’s been quite a while since I’ve had tuna steaks and now I’m thinking it’s time! Way to make a restaurant fave even better at home! A nice glass of wine and this and I’m set 😉
Sounds great to me, Dawn! Thank you!
I order rare tuna whenever I get the opportunity when we dine out! One of my favorite entrees! Your steaks are cooked to perfection and your tips are invaluable! Thanks, Marissa.
Thank you so much, Elizabeth!
This is absolutely beautiful, Marissa! One of my favourite things to enjoy when I am out, but I look forward to recreating this at home. Divine!
That’s great to hear, Alex! Thank you!
I’m definitely one of those people wary of serving my own raw fish, but I’m always happy to eat it when it’s served to me! You’ve given me confidence with these beautiful seared tuna steaks though! They look SO good Marissa!
aww…thank you, Katherine! I hope you’ll give this a try!
This post makes me want to go find a reliable fishmonger! The grocery store version never looks appetizing, but this post is making me crave grilled tuna like crazy right now. And that sesame-honey-soy sauce combination sounds perfect!!
Thanks, David! I hope you’re able to track down some great tuna steaks.
I love grilled tuna steaks, but always afraid to make it at home. This is such a simple & easy to make recipe Marissa. Thank you for sharing
My pleasure, Rahul. Enjoy!
I am embarrassed to admit I’ve never tried fresh tuna – only canned! These tuna steaks look spectacular, and I’m totally digging this soy-sesame-honey marinade – so flavorful!
Wha!? You’ve got to try fresh, Ben! 🙂
Your tuna steak is perfectly grilled!! I don’t have a grill, but I am sure a grill pan would work just fine.
Thank you, Angie! And, yes, a grill pan would work well!