These Seared Ahi Tuna Steaks (also known as yellowfin or bigeye tuna) take only SIX MINUTES to cook to medium-rare perfection and are bursting with delicious umami flavor from the soy sauce and toasted sesame honey marinade recipe! And since marinating is optional, you can whip this tuna steak recipe up at a moment’s notice. I like serving these seared tuna steaks with rice and green beans, or simply over a bed of greens with an Asian-style salad dressing.
If I can get dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes, I’m a happy camper. Under 20? Even better. But under TEN? It’s almost too good to be true! But this one is DEFINITELY true.
So true that we’ve made these Six-Minute Seared Ahi Tuna Steaks twice in the past two weeks and fully plan on doing it again this coming week.
As you may have guessed from the title, this recipe only takes about six minutes, and it’s absolutely mouthwateringly delicious. And healthy. And EASY! What more could you want?
Fish in any form usually cooks up extremely quickly. Maybe that’s why I have so many salmon recipes on the blog. Like this Seared Salmon with Scallion Butter, and this 15-minute Poached Salmon with Chive Butter. And this Mandarin Orange Glazed Salmon!
Salmon is usually my go-to for fish, since it’s outrageously delicious and amazingly healthy.
But when I was at the grocery store the other day and saw these gorgeous ahi tuna steaks for $5 (that’s only $2.50 each!), I couldn’t resist.
What is Ahi Tuna?
Ahi tuna is type of tuna that is divided into two different species: yellowfin and bigeye. And it’s often cheaper than bluefin tuna, with a very similar flavor profile and texture. You can usually find it frozen at Trader Joe’s or your local grocery store for very inexpensive.
While I love salmon, it can be a bit pricey. And tuna, like salmon, is healthy and has an array of serious health benefits (including being high in Omega-3s and vitamin B12).
A seared tuna steak is a bit different than the canned tuna everyone is used to. For one thing: it comes in a whole, beautiful raw steak that holds its form much easier than other kinds of fish, which may tend to flake apart.
For another thing: it is usually cooked medium-rare: seared on the outside, red on the inside.
It actually looks very similar to a beef steak in this regard. It. Is. AMAZING.
Is it safe to eat raw ahi tuna?
If you’re nervous about eating raw fish, you should use your best judgement. You can always choose to cook these ahi tuna steaks all the way through to be well-done. There is always a risk to eating raw or undercooked seafood.
But tuna steaks are usually served seared on the outside and raw on the inside. Look up any seared ahi tuna recipe and you will see that it is almost always cooked this way. If you order it a restaurant, it’s bound to be cooked medium-rare as well.
If you’re looking for amazing flavor and texture, I personally think it’s worth the risk and I welcome you to jump on this bandwagon (unless you’re pregnant or have another medical reason not to consume raw fish – you should consult a physician if you’re concerned!). Fully cooked tuna can be a bit dry (like its canned counterpart), but when the outside is a crispy, salty, savory layer and the inside is a supple, soft, tender layer, it enhances the taste so much and the texture is amazing.
Plus, many of the bacteria that makes raw foods more risky to eat is usually found on the surface of the foods. If you sear the outside, as in this recipe, you’re killing off the bacteria that may make you sick. Same goes for a good seared steak.
Tuna, along with salmon, are fish that are least likely to have parasites, which is one of the reasons why you often see them served undercooked. If you buy sushi grade ahi tuna, it will have been frozen at a temperature which kills any potential parasites, so I recommend going this route just to be safe.
How to sear the tuna steaks
The fact that the tuna is served medium-rare accounts for its extremely fast cooking time. Just marinate the tuna in a mixture of soy sauce, oil, salt, and pepper (with some cayenne for some heat, if you want) preferably for at least ten minutes, or overnight.
For a typical ahi tuna steak (about 1.5″ thick), sear on each side for about two minutes (less time for rare; more time for medium). I recommend using a nonstick skillet for this, or a very well seasoned cast iron skillet (fish has a tendency to stick, and you don’t want to risk the beautiful seared outer layer sticking to the pan!).
Also, it’s important to get the pan SEARING hot before adding the fish. You want the outside to cook very quickly, while leaving the inside raw, so it should be as hot as possible before beginning to sear. I usually heat the pan for 3-5 minutes.
Let it rest for a few minutes, slice, and you’re ready!
What to serve with ahi tuna
I like sprinkling some sliced green onions on top of the sliced ahi tuna, along with some toasted sesame seeds and a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
It’s DELICIOUS served in a rice bowl with green beans or broccoli and a drizzle of spicy mayo or other sauce.
Or, for a super healthy and low-carb meal, serve it on a bed of greens with an Asian-style dressing. (We used this soy-ginger one that was fabulous!).
Alternatively, this would be great in a seared tuna poke bowl. Poke bowls are usually made with raw fish, but I think this fish, seared perhaps for a little less time than normal, cut up into cubes, would be excellent in a poke bowl.
I think this sliced tuna steak would be amazing on top of avocado toast, too!
How to thaw frozen fish
I bought my ahi tuna steaks frozen, but you may be able to find fresh. If you use frozen, just make sure it’s completely defrosted before cooking.
I usually take mine out of the vacuum sealed plastic and leave it on a plate, covered in plastic wrap, in the fridge for 24 hours before I plan on cooking. Then, I make sure to pat them dry before cooking, as this will create a better sear.
Other easy fish recipes
- Four-Ingredient Southern Style Oven Fried Catfish
- Garlic Butter Sheet Pan Salmon and Veggies
- New England Baked Haddock
- 10-Minute Blackened Tilapia with Avocado Cucumber Salsa
- Pan Fried Sea Bass with Lemon Garlic Herb Sauce
Love how quick and easy seafood is? Check out all my seafood recipes!
Did you make this Seared Ahi Tuna Steak Recipe? Please comment below and Rate this Recipe
Six-Minute Seared Ahi Tuna Steaks
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 ahi tuna (yellowfin tuna) steaks (about 4 oz. each, 1" thick – see notes for thinner or thicker)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil see notes
- 1 tablespoon honey see notes
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 1 tablespoon canola oil or olive oil
- green onions, toasted sesame seeds, and lime wedges for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Pat the ahi tuna steaks dry with a paper towel. Place on a plate or inside a plastic bag.
- Mix the soy sauce (2 tablespoons), toasted sesame oil (1 tablespoon), honey (1 tablespoon) kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon- OMIT if marinating for more than a couple hours, see notes), pepper (1/4 teaspoon), and cayenne pepper (1/4 teaspoon) until honey is fully dissolved. Pour over the ahi tuna steaks and turn over to coat completely. Optional: allow to marinate for at least 10 minutes, or up to overnight in the refrigerator. Also optional: Reserve a spoonful or two of the marinade before coating the fish for drizzling on top after you've cooked it.
- Heat a medium skillet (preferably non-stick or a well-seasoned cast iron skillet) on medium-high to high until very hot ( or medium medium-high for nonstick). I recommend giving cast iron 3-5 minutes to get hot and nonstick about 1 minute, depending on how thick it is.
- Add the canola oil (1 tablespoon) to the hot pan. Sear the tuna for 1 – 1½ minutes on each side for medium rare ( 2 -2½ minutes for medium-well to well, 30 seconds for very rare. See notes – this will vary based on thickness of the tuna steaks). (Note: different burners get hotter depending on your stove. Use your best judgement whether you use medium, medium-high, or high heat, as the marinade may burn if too high heat is used)
- Remove to a cutting board. Slice into 1/2 inch slices and serve garnished with green onions, toasted sesame seeds, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice, if desired.
Notes
- For thinner or thicker tuna steaks, you may need less or more searing time. If you are using tuna steaks that are less than 1 inch, I recommend no more than 1 minute per side, depending on your preference for doneness. For thicker steaks, you may need to do 2 minutes per side. You may also need less searing time depending on the temperature of your fish- if it’s been sitting out of the fridge for a while, it will take less time to cook.
- This recipe has been updated from its original. It had a simpler marinade of 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon canola oil, salt, and pepper before. If you’re short on ingredients (like toasted sesame oil and honey) try this simpler version!
- For a gluten-free version, be sure to use gluten-free soy sauce. Or, for a paleo/whole30 compliant option, use liquid aminos instead.
- Depending on how hot your burners are, you may have to experiment with how long to sear each side. Depending on the stove I’m using, I sometimes only cook it for one minute on each side for medium-rare!
- You can also grill this over hot coals or high heat on a gas grill for about 1 minute per side.
- Marinating for a while can cause the fish to taste saltier, as it will have more time to absorb the flavor. If you’re planning on marinating for more than an hour or so, or if you are sensitive to salt or want a lower sodium version, I suggest omitting the kosher salt and/or using low-sodium soy sauce.
- Carryover cooking will occur if you let your tuna rest for too long after cooking. Slicing it immediately will result in a more rare temperature, and letting it rest before slicing will cook it further.
- There is always a risk when eating raw or undercooked seafood. Tuna, along with salmon, are fish that are least likely to have parasites, which is one of the reasons why you often see them served undercooked. If you buy sushi grade ahi tuna, it will have been frozen at a temperature which kills any potential parasites, so I recommend going this route just to be safe. Please talk to a medical professional if you have concerns about this.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
This recipe first appeared on Bowl of Delicious in November 2015. The recipe has been modified to be even more delicious, and the post updated with more pertinent information and new photos. See recipe notes for original recipe ingredients.
Mark
Delicious easy recipe. Will be. Making it often. Used frozen tuna steak from Sam’s club. Thawed overnight and marinated for 4 hours. Served with mushroom risotto.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Sounds like a delicious meal.
Plm
This is the first time I have tackled tuna steaks at home. This was easy & delicious. I doubled the marinade (saved some for topping as suggested) and subbed coconut aminos for the soy sauce. Served over rice with a side of broccoli. Absolutely amazing. Thanks for the great recipe.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
michelle rooney
I let the tuna steak marinate over night. Seared two minutes per side and it was great 👍 taste was awesome 👏
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Lyza
I’ve always just baked tuna steaks in the oven because I’m not picky, but my boyfriend is, especially if he’d rather be having a mammal steak. So when he said he’d like to try eating better with me, I figured I’d try to make the dish I used to make for myself tastier, nabbed this marinade, and it was so good I can’t just bake them in the oven ever again. Delicious. He threw the tuna steaks on the grill, and they ended up smokey on top of everything else. So good. Thanks. I had it with a big bowl of vegetables in a butter sauce, but I think next time I’d make extra marinade and spoon that over some roasted asparagus or broccoli. Or pop the tuna on a bed or garlic potatoes. Thanks for the new staple!
Elizabeth Lindemann
That sounds like a delicious healthy meal and love that you grilled the tuna steaks! So glad you and your boyfriend liked it!
Mathilde Le Villain
This was aboslutely delicious and so easy to prepare. I served it with some baked sweet potatoe mash and seared sugar snaps. I will definetely do it again!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it, and that sounds like a delicious healthy meal!
Lexi
This looks great, I have some ahi tuna steaks I bought frozen. Could these be seared after thawing in the fridge for a day or so, or would you recommend cooking through? Thanks (:
Elizabeth Lindemann
I use frozen ahi tuna all the time for this! Just defrost for about 24 hours in the fridge and then follow the recipe as directed. There’s always going to be a little risk with raw fish (or runny egg yolks, or anything like that) of course but I’ve personally never had an issue with using frozen, defrosted ahi tuna.
Andrea
Oh my gosh this was delicious! I will definitely make this again (and again and again!). I served with rice and roasted green beans and I made extra sauce to drizzle over everything, finished with green onions and sesame seeds. The squeeze of lime juice added a nice dimension also.
This was a super quick meal to put together! I seared in a cast iron pan one minute each side and it was closer to medium than medium-rare, so make sure to keep a close eye on it! I might take the salt down a notch next time as personal preference, but this was really amazing, thank you for a great recipe!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! That sounds like a delicious meal. And great advice to keep an eye on how fast it cooks!
Charles
Easy with great favors. Will be using this again…
Elizabeth Lindemann
Thanks! So glad you liked it.
Ade
This was the bomb.
I followed directions but added more honey, sesame oil and pepper.
I marinated for 20 minutes and cooked each side for 2 minutes which made the edges medium done and the middle, medium rare.
Next time I will stick to 1.5 minutes for sure. I can’t wait to make this again.
I honestly hated cooking Tuna before this recipe.
Thank so much.
One more thing… Would you have a recommendation for re-heating this just in case you don’t finish it one sitting?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Aw yay! So glad this recipe worked well for you and you no longer hate cooking tuna! I actually don’t recommend reheating it if you have leftovers. I’d just eat it cold in a salad or something within 24 hours. You technically could reheat it but it will likely cook through so the texture won’t be as delicious. I’m surprised you had leftovers though haha that never happens to me :-) Hope that helps!
Michelle
Simple and delicious recipe. Just watch out if you have a thinner cut of fish.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! And great advice for keeping an eye on thin cuts. They cook so fast!
Phuonghoang
My husband loves this recipe a lot. So we bought a bunch of tuna steak and put them into the freezer. We like to eat it with rice and seaweed salad, or with mashed potatoes. It is so delicious.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your husband like it!
Carol Gardner
Delicious marinade. We tried this recipe and have fixed it 3 times since! Love it
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Amy
We had this tonight and it was so delicious!! Thanks for the recipe!!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Jen
This was SO GOOD!!!! I added a clove of garlic and dash of Dijon mustard to the marinade. Also in the marinade that I set aside I added some fresh lime juice. Will absolutely be making again. Paired great with cilantro lime rice and asparagus! Thanks for sharing.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it – that sounds like a delicious meal!
Erik
Cooked this twice in 4 days. Very easy and delicious
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Victoria K
This is seriously SO good. My husband LOVED it – he said it was nice restaurant level. Was easy and fun to make. I paired with a cabbage crunchy asian slaw with very similar ingredients I already had on the counter from this recipe, and black rice. 100.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
ariel
Easy and delicious! I also coated one side with TJ’s everything but the bagel seasoning and it was very tasty.
Elizabeth Lindemann
What a great idea to use everything bagel seasoning! So glad you liked it.
Neeraj Mittal
wow, I did the recipe to the tee and paired it with a avacado-mango salsa and basmati rice. It was heavenly!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! That avocado mango salsa sounds heavenly :-)
Moe
Hi! Excited to try this out tomorrow. I noticed the hyperlink to the “simpler version” is missing. Would you mind sharing it please? Asking because I don’t have sesame or canola oil, but I do have olive oil!
Thanks :)
Elizabeth Lindemann
Thanks for pointing this out- I can see that my wording is confusing there! I actually don’t have a hyper link to the simpler version- it’s just explained in the notes in the recipe (2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon canola oil, salt, and pepper). But, if you don’t have sesame and canola oil, don’t worry! You can definitely make this with olive oil. Just substitute the olive oil for canola oil and you’ll be good to go! Canola oil has a more neutral taste than olive but olive oil will definitely still work here. Hope that helps and hope you like it :-)
Moe
Ha! My mistake. I ended up making it just like this and it turned out great. Thanks Elizabeth :)
Elizabeth Lindemann
So happy you liked them!
Jeanne Preudhomme
Quick, easy and so delicious!! Had everything in the cupboard to make this a quick week’s dinner. Japanese rice cooked with edamame and simple pineapple and sweet pepper salsa completed the meal.
Elizabeth Lindemann
Sounds like a delicious meal! Glad you liked it :-)
Lynne
Made this tonight and thoroughly enjoyed.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad to hear that!
Bill Remy
Made this exactly as described by the recipe. Then sliced the tuna and put in a bowl with brown ride and broccoli sauteed with garlic. Drizzled the extra marinade on the bowl to top with sesame seeds. Taste is great and very healthy.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Kirah
Very delicious. Even my 9 year old loved it. I followed the recipe to the T. I will be making this again for sure.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you and your nine-year-old liked it!
CeeCee Robinson
My husband and I loved this recipe. I made enough marinade for 5 tuna steaks. I did not add the green onions, sesame seeds, or lime wedges (allergic to citrus), but I did add 1-1/2 teaspoons of dried ginger and marinated the steaks for 45 minutes while preparing side dishes. I served this with a chimichurri recipe I also found online and it paired really well with these steaks. Thanks for this recipe!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!