Tuna on Toast

Don’t mind me.  I’m just trying to sneak in a few more recipes with deliciously non-local ingredients before the weekend.  By the way, thanks for all of your kind words regarding my last post.  You guys are swell. 

Anyway, we’ve been getting tons of green peppers in our farmshare.  But, as much as I love sausages and peppers, one can’t live on DePasquale sausages alone.  Actually, sure you can, but the curly, pink tail you develop is hard to conceal in today’s low-rise fashions.  Fins are much more practical, not to mention stylish, in the summertime. 

So, let’s talk tuna.  Imported solid white tuna in olive oil.  This recipe is a recreation of something Husband and I had in Spain some years ago.  We stopped in for a bite at the bar at Casa Chema in Seville and, by god, was that some good eatin’.  Everything they put in front of us was good, but what has been haunting me ever since was this: onions, peppers, and tuna (or was it bonito?) in olive oil.  Served cold (or, perhaps, lukewarm).  That’s it.  Sounds gross and weird, huh?  But, it was stab-you-in-the-heart-with-a-fork delicious.

It took me a few tries to get it right since I was a little fuzzy on the particulars.  In the end, long, slow cooking did the trick.  For the past few weeks, I’ve been slathering the stuff bruschetta-style on baguette slices, or when those run out (as they always do), on the toasted heels of sandwich bread, which then leads me somehow to the middle of the loaf, and before you know it, it’s just me and a spoon staring at an empty dish. 

Anyway, my apologies to Chema for bastardizing his recipe.  We’ll meet again, amigo mio, and when we do, I sure hope you fight like a girl.

 

Tuna on Toast

¼ cup Spanish extra-virgin olive oil
2 yellow onions, sliced thinly
2 medium green bell peppers (or one green, one red), seeded, sliced thinly
2 6-oz. cans solid white tuna (or bonito) packed in olive oil, drained
Hearty pinch of kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.  Add the onion and bell pepper.  Toss with salt and pepper, and cover, reducing heat to low.  Cook 45 minutes to 1 hour, stirring occasionally without letting the vegetables brown.  Add the tuna to the pan, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as you mix.  Sauté for one more minute.  Let cool and then refrigerate.  Serve chilled on bread or toast.

Comments

[jo]

On my list to make this weekend cause if there is one thing I worship it is a bitchin tuna melt and I am guessing this will make a first class open faced tuna melt.

[Tammy]

Jo: Indeed it will.

[Husband]

I can tell you, traveling in Spain with cute chicks who speak Spanish really helps for memorable experiences. As Tammy said, the meal we had was fantastic. It was a hot day (100F) and we were tired and hungry. We didn't know what to order, so the staff said "We'll bring you all the best things!" And I can say, the tuna dish was surprisingly refreshing and delicious (as were the other dishes). What a great day!

[Becky]

I tried to make this and ended up with way too much onion and pepper and way too little tuna. Is it supposed to be primarily veggies with very little fish? It was delicious -- maybe I'll just try to make it with another can (or two) of tuna next time...

[Tammy]

Becky: Thank you for your comment. You're right--that was supposed to be 2 cans of tuna fish. It's not supposed to be vegetables with a speck of fish. I've updated it accordingly. Sorry about that, I don't know what kind of drugs I was on when I typed up the recipe.

[Jim]

I stumbled onto this site yesterday when I came across a bourbon sauce for ham. Bookmarked it because I am always looking for new ideas. My wife is adverse to canned tuna but she loved the patty melt I made her today, with slight varaitions. I sauteed a few tablespoons of red and green bells with the same amount of onion. I then mixed in 2T mayo and made the patty melts with swiss. Thanks for the great recipe idea! I look forward to trying many more here in central Florida!