How To Tell When Your Tuna Steak Is Done Cooking

While they make for an excellent restaurant order, tuna steaks are among those opulent seafood dishes that can be perfected from the comforts of your own kitchen. Although they're quick and relatively simple to prepare, tuna steaks are also easy to overcook. If they aren't a frequent flyer in your dinner rotation, it can be tricky to know when exactly they're done. To save you from the dangers of winging it, Chowhound spoke with Victoriano Lopez, the executive chef of San Francisco restaurant La Mar Cocina Peruana, to get the scoop on nailing the perfect sear — because no one wants to turn a prized cut of tuna into a cautionary tale.

The most foolproof way to test for tuna steak doneness is by using quantitative methods. More plainly, Lopez says, "The ideal temperature [to cook tuna steaks to] is 145 degrees Fahrenheit and medium rare." You can't gauge the best temperature of a tuna steak without an accurate meat thermometer, like ThermoPro's digital tool, but if you don't have one, there are qualitative ways to assess its doneness. As you cook a tuna steak, its pink color will change. "Once both sides of the tuna are opaque and the whole steak is a light shade of grey, it is ready to eat," he says.

Beyond its delicate, oceanic flavor, one of the best parts about making tuna steaks for dinner is that the delicious fish is done quickly. But that convenience requires you to be careful when cooking them. Lopez notes, "If you bought a high-quality product, you guarantee better flavor and taste, and you don't want to jeopardize that by overcooking it." One to two minutes on each side of the fillet should give you a chef-approved tuna steak.

Overcooking tuna steak is a common mistake that anyone can make. Just a few extra seconds of cooking time can damage its quality. But if you wind up with a dry, overcooked tuna steak, don't waste it. Before you toss it out, try to remedy the situation.

Pair an overcooked tuna steak with a flavorful sauce to reintroduce some of its lost moisture and add a touch of inspired flavor that distracts from its too-done taste. A lemon-butter sauce, garlic cream sauce, or soy-based glaze are all excellent options. You might also consider using a reverse marinade, which features the usual suspects — acid, fat, and seasonings — but is applied after cooking rather than before. Instead of marinating tuna steak in the mixture for an extended period, you can apply the marinade and serve it right away. A combination of sesame oil, rice vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, and chili flakes is a great roster for this fish. Finally, pair an overcooked tuna steak with soft, moist side dishes like mashed potatoes or creamy polenta.

Additionally, instead of serving a whole chunk of dehydrated tuna steak, consider cutting it into thin slices. A dense mouthful of dry fish is unappetizing, but smaller, thinner cuts of a dry fillet boast a more palatable mouthfeel. Plus, thin slices will easily absorb any sauce you use to imbue a parched steak with some much-needed moisture.

Tuna steaks are the perfect dish for budding foodies eager to make restaurant-quality food at home with no Michelin-level skills required. And as long as you keep chef Victoriano Lopez's timing tips in mind, you won't have to worry about fixing an overcooked tuna steak.