Salvage tuna marinated in pineapple

Question

I was experimenting with marinating tuna steaks in a pineapple/orange sauce and when I seared one, it had a mushy surface and overwhelming pineapple flavor. I still have a few steaks marinating. Can they be salvaged?

Aside - this would have worked well with Chicken. I've broiled chicken in the contents of a can of Fanta with some peeled madarins floating around, and it tasted *fancy* — Criggie, Apr 13 '23 at 09:57
Every time I see this pop up in the "Hot Network Questions" list my brain reads it as "Savage tuna marinated in pineapple" - and I want the recipe! — Laconic Droid, Apr 14 '23 at 00:10

score 39 · Accepted Answer · answered Apr 10 '23 at 21:40

39

No.

While you could get most of the pineapple flavor out of the tuna by soaking it in ice water for several hours, you couldn't restore the texture. Pineapple contains a natural meat tenderizer that has broken down the protein structure of the fish. Soaking out the juice won't firm it up.

I suggest mincing the fish with some hot sauce and using it for spicy tuna rolls.

answered Apr 10 '23 at 21:40

FuzzyChef

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Specifically ice water? – shmosel Apr 10 '23 at 22:22
Not sure what you're asking here, shmosel. – FuzzyChef Apr 10 '23 at 22:56
Just wondering if cold water will do or if there's a reason to use ice. – shmosel Apr 11 '23 at 00:04
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@shmosel food safety. If you soak for several hours, you need to keep the fish out of the danger zone. – Stephie Apr 11 '23 at 04:13

score 9 · Answer 2 · answered Apr 13 '23 at 08:53

Pizza.

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Well, you're probably not going to get decent tuna steaks out of them at this point, so double-down on the pineapple, cut up or mince the steaks, and put them on a pizza. Mushiness and a pineapple flavour wouldn't be out of place on a pizza, and wouldn't dominate next to the tomato and cheese. You could add some pineapple chunks too and anything else you fancy. Pizza is a good way to use up left-overs and failed experiments, as it is very forgiving.

score 2 · Answer 3 · answered Apr 13 '23 at 09:55

Crumbs !

Literally, use a series of egg wash and dip into breadcrumbs/flour/spices/seasoning to give you a KFC-esque layer on the outside, then pan-fry it. Seasoning will help thin the pineapple flavour.

If your steaks are thick, then you may want to halve them across the middle (thin them?) more like a minute steak. This will allow more coating and surface area to give a more-solid outside texture, to overbear the mushiness.

Salvage tuna marinated in pineapple

3 Answers3

Crumbs !