GRILLED TUNA W. SAUTEED VEGETABLES & GRILLED EGGPLANT

Delicious impromptu & healthy meal!

We wanted to eat something healthy this night, so I opted for fish and veggies and got tuna that was on sale.  As for the veggies, we usually go broccoli or green beans, and I decided we should have something different, so I got a yellow bell pepper, zucchini, red onions and eggplant!  Delicious turnout!

Ingredients (serves 2):
2 - 6-8 ounce portions of tuna steak
Chimichurri sauce, recipe follows
1 small Italian eggplant, sliced in 1/4 inch thick rounds
1 yellow bell pepper, cored and seeded and sliced in strips
1 small zucchini, cut into 1/4 inch rounds and each round halved
1/2 red onion, sliced into 1/4 inch rings
1/2 shallot, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced like garlic chips
1 teaspoon Chipotle Chile powder
1/2 lemon, cut into 4 wedges
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

1. Marinate the tuna in 1/3 cup of  the chimichurri sauce for 30 minutes in a sealable plastic bag or in a bowl covered with plastic wrap, turning halfway through.  Place cut up zucchini and eggplant on a plate and sprinkle with salt to extract some water (so that they saute and don't get watery in the pan).
2. Heat a grill pan to medium-high.  Heat a medium saute pan to medium-high (closer to medium) with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil.  
3. Saute the garlic and shallot in the saute pan for one minute.  Toss in the bell pepper, zucchini, and red onion.  Add the Chipotle Chile powder, and season with salt and pepper.  Saute for about 6-8 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Meanwhile, place the eggplant slices on the grill pan, flip after one minute, then place on the edges of the grill pan.  Add the tuna to the center of the grill pan and sear each side for 2 minutes to have a rare-medium center.
5. Serve with the reserved chimichurri sauce and lemon wedges.

Chimichurri sauce - There are tons of recipes online and lots of varieties.  It is basically made of several herbs, olive oil, and an acidic component such as red wine vinegar or lemon.  I looked up different recipes and made it with what I had on hand - the measurements are approximate - taste it first!

1/3 cup olive oil

1 small handful basil, finely chopped

1 small handful parsley, finely chopped

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion

Salt

Pepper

Whisk together olive oil and red wine vinegar, add herbs and onion, salt & pepper to taste.

Marinating the tuna

Salted zucchini to extract some water

Grilling the eggplant

Sauteeing the vegetables

Grilling the tuna w. the eggplant on the edges