Lobster Rolls don’t mean a thing to me, but Tuna Rolls sure do. Before I lived in Boston, I never knew about Lobster Rolls (rightfully so, coming from a family that keeps Kosher-ish). I remember the afternoon like it was yesterday, I took the train to Rockport and grabbed lunch at a quaint cafe. I don’t remember the name of the restaurant or what I ordered, but I do remember the lobster roll the couple next to me ordered and thinking, “it’s served on a hotdog bun!?” Fast forward about three years, when I saw a Barefoot Contessa episode where she made Grilled Tuna Rolls – this I could do. I LOVE tuna, in all forms (albacore sushi, seared ahi, tuna salad…) and this recipe definitely makes my list of favorites. I like to make it on extended weekends (like Memorial Day this weekend!), and we’ll usually enjoy it for a few days. I might not be bringing them next door to my neighbor, Rob Marshall, but hey, I think making them for us is a pretty good second best.
Some tips
- We found it better to dice the tuna in small 1/2 inch cubes, rather than 1-inch. We made it both ways, and felt the smaller pieces were easier to eat.
- I seared the tuna in a nonstick pan, and used about 1-2 tsp. of olive oil
- To help in cutting the tuna up later, I asked the fishmonger to cut the tuna steak in half so that it made 1/2 inch thick steaks
- I suggest using 2-3 tbsp. of red onion instead of 1/4 cup – for us, it was too strong otherwise
- For hot dog buns, any kind will do – we use the low-cal kind
- The mix also works great on crackers as an appetizer
Grilled Tuna Roll
(Please excuse the camera-phone quality picture)
