Grilling Fish–A Recipe You Gotta Try

My wife, Shirley, knows that each and every year I rekindle a love affair--and honestly, she encourages it!

Just as soon as the weather breaks I anxiously make my way out to our one-car garage where I keep her stowed away. Carefully, I roll her out from the deep recesses where she's been waiting patiently for months. I'm sure you've figured out by now that I'm talking about the family grill.

For many a year I've babied, cared for, cleaned, repaired, and cooked on that sweetie.  Tons of barbecue sensations have been created on that hunk of metal, and a few cooking disasters too. I won't get into that here.

We've cooked many types of meats in many different ways: beef, pork, chicken, venison, moose, etc., but the one challenge we've overcome is the art of grilling fish. When it's done right, there is no other taste like it on the planet.

Now recipes are those things that we all borrow or sometimes "steal" from one another. I have no shame when it comes to asking or copying recipe favorites and secrets. Below is one that I've borrowed from Delish.com. It involves cooking tuna steaks. We're gonna try it this Labor Day weekend. Don't be afraid to try it.  I'm sure we're gonna love it!

GRILLED TUNA WITH LEMON ANCHOVY BUTTER

Ingredients

• 4  tablespoon(s) butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) anchovy paste
• 1  teaspoon(s) lemon juice
• 1  tablespoon(s) chopped fresh parsley
• Salt
• Fresh-ground black pepper
• 4  tuna steaks, about 1 inch thick (about 2 pounds in all)
• 1  tablespoon(s) cooking oil

Directions

1. Light the grill or heat the broiler. In a small bowl, combine the butter, anchovy paste, lemon juice, parsley, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
2. Coat the tuna with the oil. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook the tuna for 4 minutes. Turn and cook until done to your taste, 3 to 4 minutes longer for medium rare. Top the hot fish with the flavored butter.
3. Fish Alternatives: The lemon anchovy butter would also be very good with grilled halibut, swordfish or salmon steaks.
4. Variation: Grilled Tuna with Sun-Dried-Tomato Basil Butter: Mix 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil, 3 chopped oil-packed or reconstituted sun-dried tomatoes and a pinch each of salt and pepper into 4 tablespoons room-temperature butter. Use this mixture in place of the lemon anchovy butter.
5. Wine Recommendation: The trick here is to find a wine with enough body to go with the tuna but lots of acidity to stand up to the flavorful lemon anchovy butter. Try a sauvignon blanc from New Zealand or from California.