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Home » Blog » Recipes » Softcore Albacore (Tuna Braised in Olive Oil)

Softcore Albacore (Tuna Braised in Olive Oil)

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If wrapping albacore steaks in bacon and blasting them under the broiler is hardcore, I suppose slowly poaching them in the oven bathed in olive oil is the softcore version. It’s less in your face and more pleasing to the ladies.

Albacore tuna braising in a bowl of olive oil.

For this low and slow preparation, I followed David Tanis’s recipe from the New York Times with a few minor tweaks. For those of you out of the foodie gossip loop, he’s the former Chez Panisse chef who raised David Chang’s hackles for daring to serve unadorned figs on a plate for dessert. I was on the fence as to who I was cheering for in this squabble because I love David T.’s simple recipes but David C.’s f-bombs make me giggle.

If you’ve got fresh albacore, make this Whole30-friendly dish ‘cause it’s simple, tasty, and leftovers (which are stored in the braising liquid) keep for a week.

Time to make Softcore Albacore, A.K.A., Tuna Braised in Olive Oil!

Serves 6

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds skinless albacore fillet
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground pepper
  • 1 tablespoon seafood seasoning blend (salt-free)
  • 4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  • approximately 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Method:

Heat the oven to 350°F with the rack in the middle.

Raw albacore tuna on a cutting board.

Cut the albacore filet crosswise into 1½ inch-thick steaks.

Someone cutting a raw albacore tuna crosswise into 1.5 inch chunks.

Season both sides of the steaks liberally with salt and pepper…

Albacore tuna steaks seasoned with salt and black pepper.

…and place them in a single layer in an oven-proof dish. Sprinkle the tuna with your favorite salt-free seafood seasoning blend…

A single layer of albacore tuna steaks are put into an oven-safe dish.

…and the chopped garlic.

Someone chopping up garlic on a cutting board.

 

Chopped garlic on top of the albacore tuna steaks that are in a oven-safe dish to make softcore albacore.

Pour olive oil into the dish until it reaches halfway up the tuna steaks.

Pouring olive oil into the oven-safe dish with the tuna steaks.

Albacore tuna braising in olive oil.

Cover the dish…

Someone covering the oven-safe dish with the braising albacore tuna inside.

…and put the tuna in the oven for ten minutes.

Roasting the tuna in an oven.

Remove the dish from the oven and flip each steak…

Someone flipping the tuna steaks with tongs in the oven-safe dish.

…before replacing the lid and baking for another ten minutes. The albacore should be barely cooked through when it’s finished. Don’t overcook it!

Before serving, cool the tuna to room temperature with the lid off. Drizzle the steaks with the olive oil braising liquid and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Softcore tuna, A.K.A., tuna braised in olive oil, on a plate with vegetables on the side.


Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2021).


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Softcore Albacore (Tuna Braised in Olive Oil) by Michelle Tam / Nom Nom Paleo
Print Recipe
4.10 from 20 votes

Softcore Albacore (Tuna Braised in Olive Oil)

This Whole30-friendly tuna braised in olive oil dish is so delicious and simple. It'll be your favorite way to cook albacore.
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time20 mins
Total Time30 mins
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: albacore, gluten-free, keto, low carb, paleo, seafood, tuna, Whole30
Servings: 6 people
Calories: 382kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds tuna albacore loin skinless
  • Diamond Crystal kosher salt 
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon seafood seasoning salt-free
  • 4 garlic cloves roughly chopped
  • ⅔ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 lemon cut into wedges
US Customary - Metric

Instructions 

  • Heat the oven to 350°F with the rack in the middle.
  • Cut the albacore filet crosswise into 1½ inch-thick steaks.
  • Season both sides of the steaks liberally with salt and pepper and place them in a single layer in an oven-proof dish. Sprinkle the tuna with your favorite salt-free seafood seasoning blend and the chopped garlic.
  • Pour olive oil into the dish until it reaches halfway up the tuna steaks. Cover the dish and pop it in the oven for 10 minutes.
  • Remove the dish from the oven and flip each steak before replacing the lid and baking for another ten minutes. The albacore should be barely cooked through when it’s finished. Don’t overcook it!
  • Before serving, cool the tuna to room temperature with the lid off. Drizzle the steaks with the olive oil braising liquid and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Notes

  • Use a snug baking dish to cook the tuna so you use less olive oil.
  • You can store leftovers in the braising liquid in the fridge for up to a week.
Tried this recipe?Mention @nomnompaleo or tag #nomnompaleo!

Nutrition

Calories: 382kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 40g | Fat: 25g | Fiber: 1g
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Comments

  1. Mark says

    January 6, 2023 at 4:24 am

    2 stars
    Turned out dry, I cut it a little thicker feeling it would dry out, but after following the cooking steps to the letter it came very dry. I would decrease cooking time to 6 minutes.

    Reply

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