Everything Crusted Tuna With Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

1. 1

   To make the crust, mix together the minced garlic, onion, poppy seeds, sesame seeds and salt. Sprinkle some of this mixture on a plate. Dip the tuna steaks in the beaten egg white just enough to coat, then roll each steak in the crust mixture to coat it thoroughly, adding more of the mixture if necessary. To minimize the potential mess, coat the tuna steaks by holding them with a fork rather than your fingers. Put steaks on the same plate, atop the remaining mixture; set aside at room temperature.

2. 2

   Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

3. 3

   To make the sauce, warm the olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat, and add the garlic and shallots. Cook, stirring, until they are soft but not colored, about 5 minutes. Add the peppers, chicken stock and wine, season with salt and white pepper, and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, about 8 minutes. Carefully transfer the mixture to a blender, add the vinegar and with the machine running, pour in the grape-seed oil. Blend just to emulsify. Adjust the seasonings, adding water if sauce is too thick, and set aside in a warm place.

4. 4

   Have a metal baking pan at the ready; you will need it quickly after frying the steaks. Pour the canola oil into a 12-inch saute pan or a wok, and set over high heat; when the oil reaches 350 degrees, slip the tuna into the pan. Fry for 1-1/2 minutes on each side, until the crust is well browned. Lift out the steaks with a slotted spatula, and place in the baking pan. Transfer to the oven, and roast for 1 minute for rare, 2 minutes for medium-rare, 3 minutes for medium.

5. 5

   Remove from the oven; spoon some sauce on each of four warmed dinner plates. Cut each steak in half on the diagonal, and place the two pieces in the center of the plates. Drizzle the steaks with additional sauce.

* Per serving · 4 servings · Values may vary.