Spicy Tomatillo-Glazed Tuna Collars with Roasted Eggplant and Perilla

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Tuna collars

If you have never cooked tuna collars before, you are about to discover the best-kept secret in seafood. The collar is the crescent-shaped cut just behind the head where the richest, most succulent meat hides beneath a thin layer of skin and connective tissue. It’s fatty in the best possible way, somewhere between a steak and a piece of belly, and when you sear it in a screaming hot cast iron skillet and then finish it in the oven with this absurdly good tomatillo glaze, the result is something that genuinely rivals the best bite at any high-end Japanese restaurant. The meat goes silky and pulls away from the bone in thick, luscious flakes while the glaze caramelizes into a sticky, spicy, tangy, sweet shellac that will have you scraping the plate.

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The tomatillo miso glaze is what makes everything work and you’ll want to put it on every protein in your kitchen

This glaze is a collision of flavors that has no business being this easy. You throw raw tomatillos, miso, fish sauce, honey, yuzu juice, and a jalapeno into a blender and let it rip until smooth. That is it. The tomatillos bring a bright, citrusy acidity. The miso delivers deep umami and body. The fish sauce sneaks in that salty, funky backbone. The honey rounds everything out with just enough sweetness to balance the heat from the jalapeno, and the yuzu adds a floral, fragrant citrus note that regular lime can’t replicate. If you can’t find yuzu, caviar lime is gorgeous here, or regular lime juice works in a pinch. Once you make this glaze you’ll find yourself spooning it over roasted chicken thighs, grilled pork chops, and seared salmon for weeks.

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The eggplant

The eggplant here isn’t a side dish. It’s a co-star. Sliced into thick rounds and seared alongside the tuna collars in that same cast iron pan, the eggplant develops a gorgeous golden crust on the outside while the interior goes creamy and almost custard-like. When the tomatillo glaze hits the hot pan and pools around the eggplant, those rounds drink it up like a sponge, and every bite becomes saturated with that spicy-tangy-sweet flavor. Served over fluffy rice with a shower of torn perilla leaves, sliced green onions, and little pops of cucamelons, this is a bowl that feels like late summer distilled onto a plate. If you can’t find perilla, Thai basil brings a similar anise-y complexity, and sliced cucumber stands in perfectly for cucamelons.

Watch me make this recipe:

@carmeninthegarden Spicy, tangy, sweet glazed collars and eggplant with rice and topped with fresh perilla, green onions, and cucamelons. A delicious #gardentotable dinner for my jetlagged self! #garden #dinner #easydinnerideas ♬ original sound – Carmen in the Garden

Eggplant

Spicy Tomatillo-Glazed Tuna Collars with Roasted Eggplant and Perilla

Prep: 10

Cook: 20

Total: 30

Meaty tuna collars get seared until golden and baked under a bright, spicy tomatillo-miso glaze alongside thick rounds of eggplant that soak up every drop. Served over rice with a shower of torn perilla leaves, green onions, and cucamelons, this is one of those effortless-looking meals that tastes like it took hours.

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Ingredients

Tuna and Eggplant:

• 2 tuna collars (about 1 pound total)
• 1 large eggplant or a few small eggplants, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as avocado or grapeseed
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Spicy Tomatillo-Miso Glaze:

• 1 cup tomatillos (about 4 medium), husked and quartered
• 1 yuzu, juiced, plus 1 caviar lime, pulp scooped out, OR juice of 1 regular lime
• 1 tablespoon white miso paste
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 jalapeno, stemmed and roughly chopped (seeds in for more heat)
• 1/2 tablespoon honey

For Serving:

• Cooked white rice
• Perilla leaves (or Thai basil), torn
• Green onions, thinly sliced
• Cucamelons, halved, or cucumber, diced

Instructions

Make the Glaze:

1. Add the quartered tomatillos, yuzu juice and caviar lime pulp (or regular lime juice), miso paste, fish sauce, jalapeno, and honey to a blender. Blend on high for 30 to 45 seconds until completely smooth and the color turns a vibrant, pale green. Taste and adjust seasoning — it should be bright, tangy, salty, and just sweet enough to round out the heat. Set aside.

Sear the Tuna and Eggplant:

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Pat the tuna collars dry with paper towels and season generously on all sides with kosher salt and black pepper. Season the eggplant rounds the same way.
2. Heat the oil in a large cast iron skillet over high heat until the oil shimmers and just barely begins to smoke. Lay the tuna collars skin-side down in the pan and arrange the eggplant rounds in a single layer around them. Sear without moving for about 3 minutes, until the bottoms develop a deep golden-brown crust and the edges of the tuna turn opaque. Flip everything carefully — the eggplant should have caramelized, dark-amber spots and the tuna skin should be crisp and pulling away slightly.

Glaze and Bake:

1. Pour the tomatillo glaze evenly over the tuna collars and eggplant rounds in the skillet. You will hear it sizzle and bubble as it hits the hot pan. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake at 375°F for 10 to 15 minutes, until the tuna is cooked through and flakes easily when nudged with a fork and the eggplant is completely tender and collapsing slightly at the edges.
2. For the last minute or two, switch the oven to broil and watch carefully. The glaze should caramelize into a sticky, glossy, slightly charred shellac across the tops of the collars and eggplant. Pull the skillet as soon as you see the edges begin to darken and blister — this happens fast under a broiler, so do not walk away.
3. Spoon fluffy white rice onto plates. Nestle the tuna collars and glazed eggplant rounds on top, drizzling any remaining sauce from the skillet over everything. Scatter torn perilla leaves, sliced green onions, and halved cucamelons generously over the top. Serve immediately while the glaze is still warm and glossy.

Notes

• Finding tuna collars: Ask your fishmonger directly — most shops get them but do not display them. They are often inexpensive compared to tuna steaks. Yellowfin and bigeye collars are both excellent here. If you cannot find tuna collars, thick-cut bone-in swordfish steaks or salmon collars work as substitutes.
• Yuzu and caviar lime: These citrus varieties add a floral complexity that regular lime cannot match. Check specialty grocery stores or Asian markets for fresh yuzu. Caviar limes (also called finger limes) pop up at farmers markets in late summer. If you cannot find either, the juice of one regular lime plus a strip of lemon zest gets you close.
• Storage: Leftover tuna and eggplant keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. The glaze can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated. Reheat the fish gently in a 300°F oven to avoid drying it out.