Sunday Night: Big Salad with Tuna

This was a preparation that evolved as I was making it. My original idea was to do a tuna escabeche (similar to this one from May) and then serve that as sandwiches with spinach, marinated onions, and leftover sauce from this weekend's salmon. Somehow that idea morphed into making a big salad inspired by salade nicoise.

The salads were built on a base of mixed greens (CSA box), romaine lettuce, and baby spinach. On top of this I put, in individual piles:

1. chunks of tuna and onion slices (see below)
2. diced tomato and red bell pepper slices
3. halves of baby yellow potatoes
   
4. diced pickle
5. diced summer squash (CSA box) that had been salted in a strainer for 30 minutes, well rinsed, and squeezed out
6. a quartered boiled egg
   

I spooned leftover "salmon sauce" over the potatoes and tomato/red pepper piles, extra marinade over the tuna pile, and then drizzled good olive oil over the whole plate. We ate the salad with toast and a glass of rose. This was a very nice summertime meal.

For the tuna:
1 pound albacore tuna
1 onion, very thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
chopped herbs (I used parsley, 'tro, and tarragon, maybe 1 cup total)
juice of 2 limes
juice and seeds from a tomato
good olive oil
dry white wine (pinot grigio)
1-2 tsp sweet paprika
salt and pepper

Cut the tuna into large (two bite) pieces, dry the pieces, and salt and pepper them liberally. Brown the tuna pieces in olive oil (in batches if necessary).
Meanwhile combine the onion, garlic, herbs, paprika, tomato, and lime juice with some good olive oil and wine in a baking dish and mix well.
When the tuna is browned, transfer it directly to the dish. Add more wine and oil until the fish is mostly covered.
Cover the dish with plastic and transfer to the fridge. Let it marinade for an hour or so, turning the fish every so often.