Tuna Confit “Casserole”

Try some mid-week comfort with an homage to a classic dish.

Ingredients for Spice Paste:

½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
1 tsp coriander powder
2 tbsps water

Ingredients for Confit:

5 bay leaves
5 large cloves of garlic
5 thick strips of lemon zest
1 tsp black peppercorn
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 ¼ lb tuna steaks
enough olive oil to cover the fish (depends on the size of the pan you are using)

Ingredients for Mushrooms:

10 oz crimini mushrooms, thinly sliced
½ cup finely chopped fennel stems
½ cup finely chopped white onion
4 tbsp confit oil
2 cloves of garlic from the confit, finely chopped
¼ - ½ tsp red chili flakes
¼ tsp turmeric
salt to taste

Ingredients for the Sauce:

2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
17 oz chicken bone broth
1 ½ cups water
½ tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
pinch of brown sugar
2 tbsp heavy cream

Remaining Ingredients:

10 large potato chips, crushed
1 cup panko bread crumbs, toasted with ghee
30 deep fried curry leaves
8 oz egg noodles, boiled

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees.

While the oven is heating up, make the spice paste by stirring the turmeric, chili powder, and coriander powder with the water.

Wash the tuna steaks and pat dry. Then, spread the spice paste to cover the tuna.

Place the tuna steaks in a shallow ovenproof pan that is just large enough to hold the fish. Then, add the garlic cloves, bay leaves, black peppercorn, fennel seeds, and lemon peel around the tuna.

Pour enough olive oil to completely cover the fish and place in the oven for approximately 30 minutes. The timing varies based on the thickness of the fish as well as the quality, so after 30 minutes, check periodically until the tuna flakes easily and is cooked through. Once it is cooked, take it out of the oven and set aside to use later.

Heat a skillet and add 4 tbsp of the confit oil. Once the oil is heated, add the chopped garlic from the confit, followed by the onions, red pepper flakes, and turmeric. After a minute, add in the chopped fennel stems with a little salt and cook for another minute until softened. Then add the sliced mushrooms and sauté until all flavors are combined. Set this mushroom mixture aside for later.

To make the sauce, heat a small saucepan and melt 2 tbsp of butter. When the butter is melted, whisk in 2 tbsp of flour. Once the roux reaches a light golden color, pour in the chicken broth a little at a time while whisking. Then add the water, slowly stirring it together. Sprinkle in the salt, pepper, and brown sugar and let simmer. Once the sauce begins to thicken, add the heavy cream. Taste for balance of seasoning and adjust accordingly. Set the sauce aside for later.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the breadcrumbs in a bowl and pour about a tbsp of melted ghee over them, stirring to evenly coat. Then spread the breadcrumbs on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 2-3 minutes, making sure to not burn them. Take out and set aside for later.

Heat a little oil to fry the curry leaves. Make sure the curry leaves are completely dry before adding to the hot oil. Even still, be extremely cautious of oil splattering. Fry in batches and place on a paper towel lined plate.

Place the toasted breadcrumbs in a bowl. Then, crumble the fried curry leaves and crush the potato chips into small pieces into the bowl with the breadcrumbs. Stir everything together.

To assemble the dish, place a mound of egg noodles on a plate. Add pieces of the tuna confit over the noodles. Next, drizzle the sauce over the noodles before adding the mushroom mixture. Top everything with the potato chip curry leaf breadcrumbs. Garnish with fennel fronds.

Recipe by Veda Sankaran Jalsa By Veda