Tuna on a Different Level

As do Mar Tuna - delicioso!



As you may have notice, I'm a creature of habit and can enjoy my favorite dishes time and time again.  But I noticed that the canned Bumble Bee tuna that I enjoy on the weekends was getting mushy.  Even when I purchased the albacore tuna marked premium it could be like baby food.  I was looking for a chunky texture.

This premium tuna is darker than the Bumble Bee

I spotted a brand called As do Mar at Citarella.  It cost over $7 for the can, but I was intrigued.  It's from Portugal and distributed by a company in Genoa, Italy.  To save on the calories and fat in olive oil, I usually get the tuna packed in water.  Since I was splurging financially I figured I'd slurge on the calories and get it packed in olive oil.  Now, while olive oil has fat, it's monounsaturated fat, which is good for you.  It lowers the bad chloresterol in the blood (LDL) and is said to increase the "good" chloresterol or HDL.

I like my tuna sandwiches on a brioche hero roll with arugala.

The can was bigger than your average can.  I tasted the oil - it was delicious.  It wasn't fishy at all.  I transferred the tuna and oil in a bowl.  I reserved about a quarter of the can in a separate bowl as I knew it would be too much for one sandwich.  I had the tuna in oil the next day with some coarse sea salt and a squeeze of lemon.  It was really tasty!

Add the tuna.

I prepared the tuna as I usually do, but only used a small amount of (fat free) mayonaisse.  The next time I may not use mayo at all.  I added a small amount of champagne vinegar and a squeeze of lemon, with coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Hot banana peppers

Tuna and peppers with a bruschetta topping.

I had a jar of bruschetta topping from a gift basket - I added a few dollops to the top.  It was a very strong flavored, richly texture tomato mixture - it was really good on the sandwich.

The finished product.

I sprinkled some cayenne pepper on top.

Yum!

I don't think I'll ever buy Bumble Bee tuna again.  This sandwich was really flavorful - head and shoulders over the mushy kind. 

Jeremy Piven: Pursuing a career as a thermometer

But take note:  canned tuna is very high in mercury.  You should limit your intake of fish with mercury, especially if you're pregnant.  Or Jeremy Piven.  He was in the first Broadway revival of the David Mamet play, Speed the Plow, a few years back and he dropped out of the production with virtually no notice, citing excessive exposure to mercury.  Mamet joked he was leaving the production to pursue a career as a thermometer!

Ingredients

One can AS do MAR tuna - or other high end albacore brand packed in olive oil
1 tspn low fat mayonaisse (or regular)
1 tspn fresly squeezed lemon juice
1 tspn champagne vinegar
1 brioche hero roll
1/4 cup cleaned and chopped arugala
Salt & pepper to taste

Optional toppings:

Jarred banana peppers
Bruschetta topping

Method

Pour the contents of the can into a bowl
(You may want to reserve some to eat by itself)
Add the mayonaisse (optional)
Add vinegar
Use the oil in the can - you can eye it to see how much to use
Salt & pepper to taste
Form into sandwich and enjoy!

Epicerie Boulud had amazing roated tomato soup which I had on the side.