Seared and Blackened Yellowfin Tuna

Name: Pan Seared and Blackened Yellowfin Tuna
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 1 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 2 teaspoons sweet paprika; 1/2 teaspoon onion powder; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper; 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme; 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano; 1 1/2 teaspoons salt; 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper; 12 oz Yellowfin or Ahi tuna (defrosted if frozen); 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

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Seared and Blackened Yellowfin Tuna can be on your table in under 10 minutes making this a great meal for busy weeknights.

Blackened tuna is fresh tuna that is seasoned with a dry rub of spices, mainly paprika, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne. Sear the tuna over high heat in a skillet until crispy and dark on the outside and rare on the inside. The result is a tender piece of fish with great flavor.

Jump to:

What is Yellowfin Tuna?
What You Need
How to Make Blackening Seasoning for Fish
What is Seared Tuna?
The Best Spices for Tuna
How to Sear Tuna
Storage of Cooked Ahi Tuna
What to Serve with Blackened Tuna
Sauce for Blackened Tuna
Recipe Notes and Tips:
For more healthy seafood recipes, try these:
FAQ
"📖 Recipe"

What is Yellowfin Tuna?

I have used Yellowfin Tuna (Thunnus albacares), also known as Ahi Tuna, in this recipe. The fish is seasoned with homemade blackened seasoning for a little spice and big flavor.

Yellowfin tuna is a popular fish and you can serve it raw as sushi or sashimi, or cooked in a variety of dishes such as grilling or searing. In Japanese, it is known as maguro and it is called ahi in Hawaii.

I sear the tuna in butter or oil for 30 seconds per side in a cast iron skillet and chill it until ready to serve. This is easy and I'm going to walk you through it step-by-step.

What You Need

Yellowfin or Ahi Tuna Steaks. I used one (12-oz) piece of sushi-grade Yellowfin (Ahi) tuna.
Unsalted butter, ghee, clarified butter, or avocado oil.
Blackening seasoning. You can make your own (recipe following) or in a pinch, use Paul Prudhomme's Blackened Redfish Magic. You can pick it up at your local grocery store and most fish markets.

How to Make Blackening Seasoning for Fish

This is enough seasoning for a pound of tuna. Double or triple the recipe for more fish.

Combine the following ingredients in a small bowl:

2 teaspoons sweet paprika
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (use more or less depending on your preference)
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper

You can make the spice mixture in advance. Store the spices in a small jar or airtight container with a tight lid for up to two months.

What is Seared Tuna?

Searing is cooking the outside of a food in a very hot pan to quickly create a crust on the food you are cooking.

Fresh tuna is one of the delicacies of the sea. Most of the tuna from the United States is wild-caught and frozen after harvest to kill parasites.

The Best Spices for Tuna

Blackening seasoning is a mixture of paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, black pepper, cayenne pepper, basil, and oregano. It has bold flavors and is great on tuna steaks.

How to Sear Tuna

Rinse defrosted tuna under cold running water; pat dry with a paper towel.

Press the tuna in the seasonings or just dust the top and bottom of the tuna with the mixture.

Sear tuna for 30 seconds per side. You just want to cook the outside ever so slightly.

Remove tuna from the pan. Let it rest for a few minutes. You can then slice and serve.

Storage of Cooked Ahi Tuna

You can wrap the seared tuna in plastic wrap to keep it moist and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.

What to Serve with Blackened Tuna

White or brown rice
Crisp green salad
Creamy sauce such as bang bang sauce or spicy mayo
Soy sauce or coconut aminos
Seaweed salad
Fresh tropical fruit such as cubes of mango, papaya, dragonfruit, or pineapple.

Sauce for Blackened Tuna

For a savory sauce for blackened tuna, try a mayo-based Spicy Mayo, Remoulade, or Bang Bang Sauce.

Seared tuna with sesame seeds and pink sauce.

If you like a pink sauce that you would get in a sushi restaurant, try this recipe for Spicy Mayo from Make Healthy Recipes. It combines the savory and sweet flavors of mayonnaise, garlic, sriracha, sesame oil, and a little lime juice.

I also like this sesame sauce from my Seared Yellowfin Tuna recipe. I make it with mayonnaise, coconut aminos, fresh garlic, fresh ginger, sesame oil, and lemon juice.

Recipe Notes and Tips:

Pan-seared ahi tuna is easy to make in under 10 minutes. It can be an appetizer or a main course.

Season sushi-grade ahi tuna with blackened seasoning. The seasoning mix creates a spicy crust on the tuna.

Add more cayenne pepper to the seasoning mix to increase the heat.

Sear the tuna in a hot skillet for no more than 30 seconds per side. Because of the quick sear, the fish maintains its pink center and the edges cook ever so slightly.

After searing, you can wrap the tuna in plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed later in the day. Or, for the ten-minute meal, place the cooked tuna on a cutting board and let it rest for 2 minutes. Cut (with your sharpest knife) into ½-inch slices.

A great way to serve the seared Ahi tuna is on a bed of seaweed salad. You can also use rice, green salad, avocado, microgreens, remoulade sauce, lime wedges, ad/or spicy mayo.

Garnish seared tuna with cubes of fresh tropical fruit, such as lemon, mango, dragonfruit, or papaya.

For more healthy seafood recipes, try these:

FAQ

What is blackened tuna?

Blackened tuna is fresh tuna that is seasoned with a dry rub of spices, mainly paprika, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne. The tuna is seared over high heat in a skillet until crispy and black on the outside and rare on the inside. The result is a tender piece of fish with great flavor.

Does blackening seasoning have sugar?

Blackening seasoning is made with paprika, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, oregano, and cayenne pepper. There is no sugar added.

Is blackened tuna spicy?

Blackened tuna is as spicy as you make it. It gets its heat from cayenne pepper. Taste the seasoning before using it and add more cayenne to your liking.

What is the difference between Yellowfin and Ahi Tuna?

Ahi is the Hawaiian name for Yellowfin Tuna.

What kind of sauce goes with blackened shrimp?

For a savory sauce for blackened tuna, try a mayo-based Spicy Mayo, Remoulade, or Bang Bang Sauce.

"📖 Recipe"

Pan Seared and Blackened Yellowfin Tuna

Felice Kaufman

Blackened seared tuna is a dish that involves coating a tuna steak with a blend of spices, typically including paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and black pepper. The seasoned tuna is then seared in a hot skillet or on a grill until the outside is charred or "blackened" while the inside remains rare or medium-rare. The result is a flavorful and slightly spicy dish with a crispy outer layer and a tender, juicy interior.

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Prep Time 5

Cook Time 1

Resting 4

Total Time 10

Course Appetizer, Dinner, Entrees, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Calories 311.5 kcal

Ingredients

FOR THE SEASONING

2 teaspoons sweet paprika
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper

FOR THE TUNA

12 oz Yellowfin or Ahi tuna defrosted if frozen
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Instructions

Rinse defrosted tuna under cold running water; pat dry with a paper towel.
Mix the seasoning spices together in a large bowl. Scatter on a plate.
Press the tuna into the seasoning or dust the top and bottom of the tuna with the mixture.
Heat a tablespoon of butter or oil in a medium-high skillet.
When butter is hot, add the fish and sear. Cook without moving, 30 seconds. Flip and cook for another 30 seconds.
Remove tuna from the pan to a plate. Let it rest for 15 minutes.
If serving immediately, slice tuna thinly with a sharp knife.
If serving later in the day, wrap the uncut fish in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Slice before serving.

Notes

To defrost tuna: Thaw tuna in the refrigerator for a few hours or run it under cold running water.

You can thinly slice the tuna or wrap the tuna in plastic wrap to keep it moist and refrigerate the cooked fish for up to 24 hours.

Serve the seared Ahi tuna on a bed of seaweed salad. You can also use rice, green salad, avocado, micro greens, remoulade sauce, soy sauce, lime wedges, ad/or spicy mayo.