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Confit tuna with herb potatoes and shellfish dressing

Preparation time
less than 30 mins

Cooking time
1 to 2 hours

Serves
Serves 2

By Matt Tebbutt
From Saturday Kitchen

Ingredients

For the confit tuna

  • 200ml/7fl oz olive oil
  • 2 x 200g/7oz tuna steaks
  • 150g/5½oz cherry vine tomatoes, still on the vine
  • 1 rosemary stick
  • 2 garlic cloves, smashed
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 50g/1¾oz bottarga or mojama (air dried tuna loin), grated, to garnish

For the shellfish dressing

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 banana shallot, peeled and chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, chopped
  • few thyme sprigs
  • 200g/7oz clams, scrubbed and debearded
  • 200g/7oz mussels, scrubbed and debearded
  • 200g/7oz cockles, cleaned thoroughly
  • 150ml/5fl oz Amontillado sherry
  • 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tbsp roughly chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
  • 1 tbsp roughly chopped fresh tarragon

For the herb potatoes

  • 6 waxy new potatoes, peeled
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh flatleaf parsley
  • 1 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
  • 1 banana shallot, peeled and diced
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp sherry vinegar

Method

  1. To make the tuna, preheat the oven to 120C/100C Fan/Gas ½.

  2. Place the oil, tuna, tomatoes, rosemary, garlic and bay leaf in a shallow roasting tin, making sure the oil covers the contents of the tin. Cover the tin with kitchen foil. Place in the oven and cook for 2 hours. Check that the tuna is soft and flaky. Set aside.

  3. To make the dressing, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large saucepan or casserole and cook the shallot, garlic and thyme for 2–3 minutes. Discard any clams or mussels with broken shells and any that refuse to close when tapped. Add the cockles, clams, mussels and sherry to the pan and place a lid on top. Cook until all of the shellfish has opened. Discard any clams or mussels that remain closed. Strain the shellfish mixture through a muslin, collecting the cooking liquor in a bowl below and then pick the meat from the shells. Make a dressing using the liquor, the shellfish meat, the remaining oil and the vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.

  4. To make the herb potatoes, bring a pan of salted water to the boil, then boil the waxy potatoes until tender. Drain and crush the potatoes lightly in a large bowl and mix with the herbs, shallot, oil and vinegar. Add the confit tomatoes and flaked tuna and dress with the shellfish dressing. Garnish with the bottarga and serve.

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