Tuna Spiedini with Artichoke Caponata

, from Issue #35. August, 2015
Photography by Manja Wachsmuth.
Tuna Spiedini with Artichoke Caponata

INGREDIENTS

500 grams tuna steaks cut into evenly sized pieces
olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
8-10 x 20 cm skewers or long, straight rosemary branches

Caponata
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium stalk of celery, thinly sliced
1 small red onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 anchovies, roughly chopped, optional
1 tablespoon capers
12 green olives, pitted and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 medium vine tomato, diced
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 x 400 gram tin artichoke hearts, well drained and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts, optional
¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

METHOD

Caponata: Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan and cook the celery, onion, garlic, anchovies, capers and the olives until the vegetables are soft. Stir in the tomato paste then the tomato, sugar, vinegar and the artichokes. Season and simmer for a few minutes until the mixture is thick. Add the pine nuts and parsley.

Tuna: Thread the tuna onto long skewers and brush with olive oil. If using rosemary branches strip most of the leaves off and place a long piece of aluminium foil underneath when grilling to stop them from burning. Season. Heat a sauté pan with a little olive oil and cook the tuna on all sides until golden but still rare in the centre.

To serve: Arrange the skewers on a serving platter and spoon over the caponata, which can be served warm or at room temperature.