Honey & Soy Glazed Tuna

A sweet & salty flavor profile is front and center for The 99 Cent Chef's budget tuna entree. If you are a frequent visitor to this blog you know how I like to cook with 99 cent ( or one dollar) 4 ounce frozen fish fillets in the frozen deli case bargain bin.

Most markets are now stocking these single serving packages. I've found enough variations to make a seafood paella (click here), or a fish chowder (future recipe), including: scallops, baby bay shrimp, flounder, cod, tilapia, shark, salmon and tuna.

 

I guess the knock against packaged frozen fish is that it is not fresh. Well, I spent one high school summer working on a shrimp boat, and here's a little secret: all fish caught wild from the ocean gets frozen -- the main difference is how long it's been that way, that's all. Any commercial fishing boat puts their fish on ice; and it is frozen by the time it arrives in your local market seafood case, then defrosted and advertised as "fresh". The only fish that is fresh is what you catch yourself!

Well that's my rant about so called "fresh fish" from the market -- now back to my cheapie Honey & Soy Glazed Tuna.

This recipe is quick and simple to make. Just pour some honey into soy sauce to make a fish marinade, and then quickly saute the tuna steak. I use low sodium soy sauce because the salt will overpower the delicate tuna taste, although honey helps out with this.

My honey and soy marinade will work with almost any firm fish, like tilapia or salmon. So try out my latest tasty budget fish entree that is ready to eat, from start to finish, in barely 10 minutes.

Ingredients
4 ounce fish steak - any firm fish will do, I used tuna.
2 tablespoons of honey
1/4 cup of soy sauce - low sodium is preferred, but any type will do.
1 tablespoon of oil for sauteing.
Pepper to taste - optional.
Soy sauce has plenty of salt.

Directions
Add oil to saute pan over medium heat. In a wide bowl, pour in soy sauce and honey and whisk together to mix well. Add fish fillets and coat well. Season fish with pepper (optional).

Add fish to heated saute pan, and cook one side of fish until it is almost done, about 3 minutes, (depending how thick the fish steak is). When fish starts to firm up and brown on one side, turn it over and add leftover marinade - be careful when adding liquid to a hot pan. Cook fish in sauce for a minute then remove it to a plate. Turn heat up to reduce marinade to a syrup thickness, should take a minute or two.

Serve Honey Soy Glazed Tuna with reduced marinade -- or serve cooked tuna on a salad. Allow the marinade to cool, and add a splash of balsamic vinegar for a soy salad dressing.