Up until about ten years ago, tuna might have been considered an underutilized species—we ate lots of it, but only the mushy canned stuff, which bears about the same resemblance to fresh tuna as K-rations do to a prime steak. During the big restaurant push of the eighties, though, tuna emerged as a chef’s favorite menu item. In this it was aided not only by its reasonable price and availability, but also by its adaptability to grilling and sautéing and its strength of character, which allows it to hold up to lots of bold flavors.

Undercooking tuna is popular because the meat is so similar to steak that it just seems like a natural way to cook it. One word of caution: If you’re looking for tuna to undercook, make sure you get #1 grade. Freshness is always paramount. Fish are graded by color, texture, and freshness, and with #1 grade you are sure to get fish that is free of parasites. Look for meat that is red, gleaming, and moist.

You can substitute steaks of grouper, mahi mahi, swordfish, or salmon in this recipe, but in that case you will probably want to cook the fish a couple minutes more.