Seared Ahi

The Desperate Gourmet presents a simple meal for a complex world

A lot of my working life is spent on the road, living in extended stay hotels for months at a time. By the time I get back to my room after a long day, the last thing I want to do is cook. But, with the current Covid-19 challenges, going out to dinner is an even less attractive option. My spotty record with drive through fast food orders, combined with the inherent health risk makes that choice a non-starter for me.

I have a feeling that, even when things return to normal (whatever that is), a lot of folks will continue to put their newfound cooking skills to use rather than spend their hard-earned dollars for the sake of ambiance.

So, if you are up to it, my advice is to amass a small collection of supermarket spices that you like. Resist the urge to buy large quantities of something to save money. This stuff does not last forever and, if you travel like I do, you will be throwing it all away when you fly home.

In one of these extended-stay hotels, you are pretty much stuck with whatever cheap cookware comes with the room. For home cooking, you should invest in a decent set of thick-bottomed stainless steel pots and pans. I am a huge fan of Lodge brand cast iron pans and my Imusa cast iron wok. I stay away from any coated or uncoated aluminum cookware despite the promise of durability, low maintenance and effortless cleanup. Sooner or later, traces of that advanced coating technology is going to end up in your body (my opinion).

Buy quality ingredients. Even the big box stores stock an impressive variety of international products like Kalamata olives, Japanese rice vinegar and Irish cream butter. The latter has a rich, creamy flavor not found in domestic brands. Something to do with treating the cows to less science and more green grass.

My favorite healthy cooking oil lately is unrefined avocado oil. It can tolerate high heat (500 degrees without smoking) better than most other products. Even the other so-called “good” oils that aren’t processed or hydrogenated with solvents tend to produce compounds known to be carcinogenic when heated to their smoke point. For recipes requiring extra virgin olive oil, I’ll chose Greek every time for quality and taste.

If you have the time, opportunity and desire to develop your cooking skills, you owe it to yourself and your loved ones to do so. Why? A universal truth is that food makes people happy. If you can take the burden off someone else’s shoulders by sharing the cooking responsibilities, it will be appreciated. You will see it in their eyes. Whether the meal is simple or complex, ordinary or adventurous it is an expression of love. With practice comes proficiency, pride and a sense of accomplishment. You will undoubtedly experience failure manifested by over-seasoned, undercooked and burnt food, scorched pans and dampened spirits. Keep your sense of humor because through trial and error you will find flavors, processes and shortcuts that work for you.

I am no chef. I’m just an uptight engineer who burned out on fast food and having to eat whatever was put in front of me. I grew tired of bad service and overpriced food; not knowing what or how old the ingredients were. By vocation I take things apart just to put them back together and see a parallel in cooking. It helps to possess innate curiosity and a passion for food. I was raised on nothing more exotic than meatloaf and macaroni but, in traveling the world for work, learned to appreciate the new and the unusual. Nowadays reasonably priced, quality ingredients are available most anywhere. You have nothing to lose and the whole world to gain simply by trying.

With all that being said, I present a quick and healthy seared Ahi dinner serving one or two people. Prep time approximately twenty minutes.