Recently I fell into a food-related conversation with a young friend of mine when we encountered each other at Costco. She told me she likes to buy ahi tuna steaks at Grocery Outlet because they are tasty and affordable. After purchasing some, I texted her asking for details on how she prepares them.
I am not a wing-it kind of cook. I like recipes. Preferably tried and true recipes from my sister or my mother-in-law, or some other good cook. But this is what Ms. J. replied: "I make rice with coconut cream. Then we layer the whole meal something like this: on the bottom coconut rice, next wilted spinach with a little peanut sauce, then the pan seared ahi tuna and chopped cashews on top."
Oh boy, that left me with SOOOO many questions! I picked my daughter's brain, and she promptly found a recipe for coconut rice on Pinterest. (I still don't think of Pinterest right away, although by now I should.) Then I searched for a recipe for Peanut Sauce. I also hunted for and found instructions on pan-searing ahi tuna.
What went right:
The tuna was done perfectly, even though it had to sit in the pan while the rice finished cooking. I used onion powder to season the tuna, and it added a nice flavor.
The peanut sauce was good, even though I risked adding more soy sauce, lime juice, and sriracha sauce to it because all I could taste was the peanut butter.
The spinach was nicely wilted and not all soggy.
What went wrong:
The suggested 20-30 minutes was not enough time for my Thai jasmine rice to cook in the coconut milk. I suppose it takes longer because one has to keep lifting the lid and stirring it so it doesn't stick. I would say 40 minutes would have been better. I stopped cooking it at 35 minutes because I didn't want the spinach and the tuna to get overdone.
And I forgot to chop the cashews.
What I would change:
As mentioned previously, I would cook the rice longer, which means I would also start the tuna and spinach later in the process. I would try a different peanut sauce recipe, just for fun. I would put everything into a smaller pan to serve it, so maybe the rice wouldn't cool off as quickly. And I would consider chopping the cashews (I left them whole) and serving them on the side.
Conclusion:
This was an experiment that turned out largely well. I was out of my comfort zone with the vague instructions, but the dish was well-received by the family. I plan to make it again some day.