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Home » Seafood Recipes » Seared Tuna Steak

Seared Tuna Steak

A photo of Vered DeLeeuw.
by Vered DeLeeuwUpdated Apr 26, 2025
2 Comments
5 from 9 votes

Jump to Recipe Review Recipe

In this 20-minute recipe for seared tuna steak, the fish is cooked in a hot skillet and then sliced and served with a spicy dipping sauce.

Seared tuna steak is served with a dipping sauce.

Served with a simple homemade dipping sauce, seared tuna steak is a restaurant-quality meal that you can easily prepare at home using sashimi-grade tuna. If you enjoy the bold flavor and meaty texture of fresh tuna, you will love this easy recipe! It's ready fast, making it ideal for a delicious weeknight dinner.

Ingredients and Substitutions

The ingredients needed to make seared tuna.

Here's a look at the ingredients required for this recipe. The exact measurements are listed in the recipe card.

For the sauce:

  • Reduced-sodium soy sauce: Or a gluten-free alternative.
  • Fresh lemon juice: It's best to use freshly squeezed juice. Rice vinegar is an acceptable substitution, but lemon juice is better.
  • Minced garlic: I often use jarred minced garlic, but I highly recommend mincing fresh garlic cloves. Sometimes I add a teaspoon of freshly grated ginger.
  • Honey: Just 1 teaspoon to balance out the other flavors. You can omit the honey or use a sugar-free substitute.
  • Crushed red peppers: Add subtle heat and an extra layer of flavor to the sauce.

For the tuna:

  • Ahi tuna steaks: They should be 1.5 inches thick and sashimi-grade, since we will keep the middle rare.
  • To season: Kosher salt and black pepper.
  • Avocado oil: Or ghee (clarified butter). If using a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet, you can skip the oil.

Instructions

This dish may seem fancy when served at restaurants, but it's actually easy to make at home. The only challenge is to avoid overcooking the fish, as overcooked tuna becomes dry and tasteless.  The detailed instructions for making this recipe can be found in the recipe card. Here's an overview of the steps.

Whisk together the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Mixing the dipping sauce.

Season the tuna with salt and pepper, then cook it for 1-2 minutes per side. The idea is to sear the outside while leaving the inside rare.

Searing the tuna steak in a skillet.

Cut the tuna into 1⁄4-inch-thick slices and serve it with the dipping sauce.

The tuna is served with the dipping sauce.

5 stars rating. I'm not a big fan of tuna usually, but the dipping sauce is so good that even I enjoyed it. I think I'm in trouble, because the wife, who likes tuna, wants me to make it weekly from now on!
Kevin
Read more comments

Recipe Tips

How long you cook the fish depends on how thick it is and how hot your stove/pan gets. Generally speaking, a 1.5-inch-thick steak should be cooked for about 2 minutes per side over medium-high heat. A thinner steak (¾ to 1 inch) will need 1-1.5 minutes per side.

This is the type of recipe where there's no escaping the need to be flexible. Loosely follow the recipe, but stay very aware of what's happening in your kitchen with your ingredients and equipment.

Ideally, the tuna should be cooked to rare or medium rare, but I should note that the CDC advises cooking fish to an internal temperature of 145°F. If you opt to leave it rare in the middle, make sure it is sashimi-grade and has been properly frozen.

Recipe FAQs

Should I marinate the tuna before cooking it?

You can use the dipping sauce as a marinade and marinate the fish in it (in a resealable bag) in the fridge for 2 hours before cooking. If you plan on serving it with a dipping sauce, make a separate batch for that.

I prefer the tuna's flavor to be the star of the show, so I simply sear it without any marinade and then serve it with a dipping sauce.

Is the tuna fully cooked?

Unlike other fish recipes (such as grilled mahi mahi), where the fish is cooked through, it is barely cooked in this recipe. It's seared on the outside, leaving the inside rare or medium-rare (but not completely raw). So, the center should be red and slightly warm to the touch.

I will note that the USDA advises us to cook fish to an internal temperature of 145°F.

Where do you find sashimi-grade tuna?

You should be able to buy it at Whole Foods, but I usually get it at Wild Fork Foods (as shown in the image below). Their sashimi-grade tuna is high-quality. It has no fishy smell! These steaks are typically huge - around 1 pound each, so I use one for two people. They come frozen, so you'll need to thaw them overnight in the fridge.

Tuna steak in package

Can I keep the leftovers?

Since the inside of the tuna is not fully cooked, I don't recommend keeping the leftovers. Try to make only as much as you'll eat immediately.

Serving Suggestions

I usually serve seared tuna steak with a simple dipping sauce made from soy sauce and lemon juice. It's also delicious when drizzled with sriracha mayo.

Although this dish is usually served as an appetizer in restaurants, I like to make enough to serve it as a main course alongside Asian cabbage salad, Asian cucumber salad, Asian Brussels sprouts (as shown in the photo below), or cabbage stir-fry.

Seared tuna steak is served with Brussels sprouts.
The tuna is served with Brussels sprouts, a dipping sauce, and sesame oil.

Sometimes, I serve it on top of mixed greens, drizzled with the sauce mentioned above, or sesame oil. It's also good with a simple tomato salad dressed with sesame oil and soy sauce, as shown in the photo below.

Seared tuna steak is served with tomato salad.

Recipe Card

Seared tuna steak is served with a dipping sauce.
5 from 9 votes
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Seared Tuna Steak with Dipping Sauce

In this 20-minute recipe for seared tuna steak, the fish is cooked in a hot skillet and then sliced and served with a spicy dipping sauce.
Prep Time15 minutes mins
Cook Time5 minutes mins
Total Time20 minutes mins
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Japanese
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 314kcal
Author: Vered DeLeeuw
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Ingredients

Sauce:

  • 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce - or a gluten-free alternative
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice - freshly squeezed
  • 1 garlic clove - minced
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Tuna:

  • 4 8-ounce Ahi tuna steaks - 1.5-inch thick, sashimi-grade
  • 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or ½ teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil - for frying; can skip if using a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet

Instructions

  • To make the dipping sauce, whisk together the sauce ingredients (soy sauce, lemon juice, garlic, honey, and red pepper flakes) in a small bowl. Let the sauce sit at room temperature while you cook the fish.
    Mixing the sauce.
  • Season the tuna with salt and pepper on both sides.
    Seasoning the tuna with salt and pepper.
  • Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet (such as a cast-iron skillet) over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes. Add the oil and swirl to coat. If your cast-iron skillet is well-seasoned, you can skip the oil.
    Heating oil in a cast-iron skillet.
  • Place the tuna in the hot pan. Cook until a golden crust has formed and the fish is medium-rare (red warm center), about 2 minutes per side.
    Searing the tuna steak in a skillet.
  • Transfer the tuna steaks to a cutting board and cut them into 1⁄4-inch-thick slices.
    Slicing the tuna on a cutting board.
  • Serve the tuna with the dipping sauce.
    The tuna is served with the dipping sauce.

Notes

  • This dish can only be as good as the raw tuna you use. It's imperative to use sushi-grade tuna that has zero fishy smell. If your fish smells fishy in its raw state, even just slightly so, the end result will be fishy. 
  • How long you cook the fish depends on how thick it is and on how hot your stove/pan gets. As a general rule, a 1.5-inch-thick tuna steak should be cooked for about 2 minutes per side over medium-high heat. A thinner steak (¾ to 1 inch) will need just 1-1.5 minutes per side. This is the type of recipe where there's no escaping the need to be flexible, loosely follow the recipe, but stay very aware of what's happening in your own kitchen with your own ingredients and equipment.
  • Ideally, the tuna should be cooked to rare or medium rare, but I should note that the CDC advises cooking fish to an internal temperature of 145°F. If you opt to leave it rare in the middle, make sure it is sashimi-grade and has been properly frozen.
  • Since the inside of the tuna steak is not fully cooked, I don't recommend keeping the leftovers. Try to make only as much as you'll eat immediately.

Nutrition per Serving

Serving: 8 ounces | Calories: 314 kcal | Carbohydrates: 3 g | Protein: 53 g | Fat: 18 g | Saturated Fat: 4 g | Sodium: 637 mg | Fiber: 1 g | Sugar: 2 g

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  1. Kevin says

    March 12, 2024 at 4:40 pm

    5 stars
    I'm not a big fan of tuna usually, but the dipping sauce is so good that even I enjoyed it. I think I'm in trouble, because the wife, who likes tuna, wants me to make it weekly from now on!

    Reply
    • Vered DeLeeuw says

      March 12, 2024 at 5:52 pm

      I'm glad you and your wife enjoyed this recipe, Kevin! Thanks for the review. It does sound like you're in trouble. 🙂

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Healthy Recipes Blog was founded in 2011 by Vered DeLeeuw. It features real food recipes with a focus on low-carb and gluten-free ingredients. All recipes are nutritionally reviewed by a Registered Dietitian. Contact us at HealthyRecipesBlog@gmail.com.

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