GRILLED TUNA WITH MANGO SALSA

Another lost photo -- I wiped out the entire camera by mistake. This recipe is courtesy of About.com. It's supposed to be peach salsa, but I didn't have any peaches, so I subbed mango, which I did have. The salsa is absolutely delicious and goes so well with the tuna. The tuna can be pan-grilled, as the recipe calls for, or you can do it on a charcoal or gas grill, which is how I do it. Any leftover tuna is great cut up on a green salad or made into a tuna salad.

Grilled Tuna with Mango Salsa

Salsa: 1/2 cup diced mango (or peach)
1/4 cup diced tomato
2 Tbsp. thinly sliced green onion
1 Tbsp. finely chopped red bell pepper
1/2 Tbsp. lime juice
1/2 tsp. minced hot pepper
1/2 Tbsp. cilantro
1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger
1/2 tsp. grated fresh garlic
1 tsp. orange juice concentrate
dash black pepper
2 tsp. honey

Combine all salsa ingredients in a medium bowl, adjusting sweetness and flavorings to your liking. Refrigerate for several hours to blend flavors. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Gingered-Lime Marinade:
1/4 cup lime juice
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger
1/8 tsp. sea salt
2 tsp. honey
1 tsp. liquid hot sauce
1/2 tsp. grated garlic
1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp. minced green onion

Combine all marinade ingredients in a resealable plastic bag. Add 1/2 lb. tuna medallions or tuna steak; massage to distribute ingredients; reseal bag; refrigerate for 1-4 hours.

Preheat gas grill to 400-425F. Grill tuna about 8 minutes per inch, turning once. Tuna should be cooked medium rare for best results -- in other words, it should be very pink inside. And don't worry, you won't get some rare disease by eating medium rare tuna.
Yield: 2 servings.

GRILLED TUNA WITH LIME-ORANGE MARINADE

I know tuna has fallen out of favor recently because of mercury scares. I take chlorella every day to help with that, so I think I can enjoy this wonderful fish now and then. Our local Harris Teeter had beautiful, fresh sashimi-grade tuna and I grabbed a little one for dinner. Grilling tuna only to medium-rare makes for a flavorful, moist entree. The marinade, my concoction, was excellent.
Grilled Tuna with Lime-Orange Marinade
Rating: 10 out of 10
2 Tbsp. lime juice
2 Tbsp. orange juice
2 Tbsp. finely chopped lime pulp and rind
2 Tbsp. finely chopped orange pulp and rind
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. minced fresh garlic
1/8 tsp. sea salt
dash black pepper
4 tuna steaks (about 4 oz. each)
1/3 cup chopped green onions
4 orange slices

In a plastic resealable bag, combine all ingredients except green onions and orange slices; seal bag; massage to distribute ingredients. Refrigerate 1/2 hour or up to 8 hours. Grill tuna on a hot grill (400-425F) for about 3 minutes each side, or till medium rare. Sprinkle green onions over each tuna steak and garnish with orange slices. Yield: 4 servings