| Home | Features | Cooking Dictionary | Cook-&-Book Reviews | Read the Articles |

Appetizer Recipes Bar & Brownie Recipes Beef & Veal Recipes Beverage & Drink Recipes Bread Recipes Breakfast Recipes Cake & Frosting Recipes Candy Recipes Chicken Recipes Cookie Recipes Dessert Recipes Ground Meat & Sausage Holiday Recipes International Recipes Lamb Recipes Pet Recipes Pie & Pie Crust Recipes Pork & Ham Recipes Salad & Dressing Recipes Sandwich Recipes Sauce & Condiment Recipes Seafood & Fish Recipes Sidedish Recipes Soup & Stew Recipes Special Diets Recipes Turkey Recipes Vegetarian Entree Recipes Wild Game Recipes

Sambal, a popular all-purpose condiment in Indonesia, Malaysia and India is at its most basic a mixture of brown sugar, chiles and salt. Here it's made with pineapple, vinegar and garlic for a heady accompaniment to pan-seared tuna with a peppercorn crust.

Pan-Seared Tuna with Pineapple Sambal

2 cups finely diced pineapple
1 cup rice vinegar
2 red jalapeño chiles, seeded and minced (see note)
2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 (6-ounce) ahi tuna steaks
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup crushed black peppercorns
1 lemon, halved
2 tablespoons peanut oil

1. To prepare the sambal:
   Combine pineapple, rice vinegar, jalapeños, brown sugar, soy sauce and garlic in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain mixture, discarding liquid. Transfer sambal to a serving bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.
2. To cook the fish:
   Season tuna with salt. Press peppercorns evenly into steaks. Squeeze lemon juice over fish and set aside while large skillet is heated over high heat. Add oil, and when very hot, but not smoking, carefully place tuna in skillet. Sear one side for about 4 minutes, turn and finish cooking on other side (about 4 more minutes for medium-rare, depending on thickness of fish). Transfer fish to plates with sambal served on top or on the side.

Makes 4 servings.

Recipe is the property of Nestlé® and Meals.com, used with permission.

Note: Working with jalapeños or other chiles: Capsaicin is the ingredient in chiles that causes the burning sensation associated with fresh peppers. It's a good idea to use rubber gloves when handling fresh chiles. (Disposable surgical gloves, available at most drugstores, work best for this.) If you choose not to use gloves, be extremely careful not to touch any part of your body, especially your eyes. After you've finished handling the chiles, wash your knife and cutting board with hot soapy water to ensure that there is no carry-over to other foods that may come in contact with the peppers.