| Did a friend forward this to you? Sign up here. Weeknight marinade Let's talk about marinades. I came across a comic recently that suggested most home cooks hate it when they see a recipe that calls for a marinade. An extra step? An overnight rest? Oh no! Look, if it's nearly dinnertime, you're in charge of dinner, and your crew is pounding their silverware on the table — or maybe it's just your own stomach, growling at you — well, that's not a moment for a marinade. But hopefully sometimes you think about dinner more than 30 minutes in advance of when you want to eat. Maybe, sometimes, you think about it the morning of, or even the day before? (No? Just me?) That's when you want to consider the marinade. In fact, some recipes that call for a marinade require only a few minutes of marinating time. And some marinades can double as dressings or sauces for the finished dish. I like how chef David Chang and writer Priya Krishna break marinades down in "Cooking at Home: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying About Recipes (And Love My Microwave)," a book full of ideas for the home cook. Their basic marinade formula is: salty + sweet + acid + umami (+ fat, if you want) "Salt brings out the flavor of the meat, sugar ensures you get color on your meat fast, acid is a tenderizer and flavor component, and umami because, well, umami," Chang and Krishna write. Consider this formula as you make tonight's meal, for Chile-Lime Tuna Steaks With Quinoa, a recipe that my editor Ann Maloney brought to The Post last year. It's from Cassy Joy Garcia's "Cook Once Dinner Fix," and I love that it only requires 10 minutes of marinating time. A combination of soy sauce (which adds salinity and umami), Thai chile sauce (which has some sweetness, umami and heat), lime juice (acidity) and olive oil (fat) turns into both a quick marinade for tuna, and — bonus! — a dressing to drizzle over the top of it. If you haven't played around much with marinades, start here. If you're looking for more tips on marinating meats, we've got a guide for that. And don't forget that marinades work on vegetables, too!  | Today's recipe |  Photos by Scott Suchman for The Washington Post; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky for The Washington Post | Chile-Lime Tuna Steaks With Quinoa - Don't eat tuna? >> This recipe would work with firm tofu; boneless, skinless chicken; slabs of zucchini and mushrooms.
- No quinoa? >> Substitute rice, a small pasta such as orzo, or serve the tuna with a salad.
- To reduce the amount of sodium >> make half the marinade and omit the sauce at the end.
- I love cilantro >> but you could use basil or parsley instead.
- Can't have anything with too much heat? >> Use 1 or 2 tablespoons of honey or brown sugar instead of the chile sauce and omit the red pepper flakes.
Make Ahead: The quinoa can be made up to 1 day in advance. The tuna should be marinated for at least 10 minutes or up to 2 hours. Storage Notes: Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. Want to save this recipe? View it on Voraciously here and click the bookmark icon below the serving size at the top of the page to add it to your Reading List. For easy printing and scaling, view this recipe in our Recipe Finder. Servings: 4
Active time: 25 mins
Total time: 45 mins Ingredients - 1/2 teaspoon fine salt, divided
- 1 cup (6 1/2 ounces) uncooked tricolor quinoa, rinsed
- 1/2 cup Thai chile sauce, or your favorite chile sauce
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 lime, finely zested and cut into wedges
- 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (from 2 to 4 limes)
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
- 4 (6- to 8-ounce) 1-inch thick tuna steaks
- 3 tablespoons lightly chopped fresh cilantro leaves, for serving
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, for serving
Steps1. In a medium saucepan over high heat, bring 1 1/2 cups water and 1/4 teaspoon of salt to a boil. Add the quinoa, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is tender, about 17 minutes. (If the quinoa is still wet, uncover, increase the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring, for 1 more minute.) Remove from the heat and keep covered. 2. While the quinoa is cooking, in a small bowl, whisk together the chile sauce, soy sauce, lime zest and juice, 1/4 cup of the olive oil, crushed red pepper flakes and the remaining salt. Put the tuna steaks in a large, sealable container, pour in half of the chile sauce mixture and marinate for at least 10 minutes and up to 2 hours in the refrigerator. Reserve the remaining marinade for serving. 3. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the remaining olive oil until shimmering. Transfer the tuna to the hot skillet, using caution because it may splatter a bit at first (discard the used marinade). Cook the tuna until a slight crust forms on the bottom, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until the tuna reaches the desired doneness, about 1 more minute for medium. 4. Divide the tuna among four plates. Mound the quinoa alongside the tuna, and spoon the reserved marinade over the quinoa and tuna on each plate. Sprinkle cilantro leaves and sesame seeds over everything, and serve with the lime wedges. NOTE: Most quinoa in the United States comes rinsed. If not, rinsing the quinoa removes any bitterness. If you rinse it, you will need a fine strainer or sieve. After testing this recipe, we doubled-up on the marinade in the original recipe. We marinated the tuna in half of the mixture and then used the other half as a dressing for the plated tuna and quinoa. That ups the sodium a bit, so if that's a concern, serve it as Garcia intended. Adapted from "Cook Once Dinner Fix" by Cassy Joy Garcia (Simon and Schuster, 2021). Tested by Ann Maloney. Nutrition information per serving: Calories: 360; Total Fat: 26 g; Saturated Fat: 6 g; Cholesterol: 75 mg; Sodium: 220 mg; Carbohydrates: 8 g; Dietary Fiber: 1 g; Sugar: 4 g; Protein: 23 g.  | Dessert | 🎧 "I Won't Back Down" by Tom Petty.
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