Ahi tuna meatballs, marinated vegetable relish, cumin yogurt, and romaine wrapped in a soft fluffy pita.
Lemon and oregano spiced tuna meatball pita with fresh and pickled vegetable relish and a creamy yogurt sauce.
To make this dish, you need to start with the freshest tuna you can find. Pick fish with bright red flesh that is firm to the touch. The section of the tuna (eye loin, belly, or tailpiece) doesn’t matter as much, but keep in mind sinewy pieces will require more work. You can check out my post on breaking down tuna here for more information. Once you have your tuna, remove the skin and dice the meat into chunks. If you purchased a piece with sinew, either cut it away or scrape the flesh from it with a spoon. Then, grind the tuna with the seasonings in a food processor. I like to have a little bit of texture in the meatballs. So, I stop processing the tuna before it all becomes a paste, leaving some small chunks.
After the tuna is ground, portion it with a 1/8 cup measure and roll each into balls. Refrigerate the balls to keep them fresh and allow them to firm up before cooking.
Once the meatballs have been made, chop and mix the vegetables for the relish, and mix the yogurt sauce. Refrigerate them for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to marry. Warm the pita in the oven while you cook off the meatballs. Check out this recipe to make the pita from scratch. Then, put everything together and devour!
Tuna Meatball Pita
Ingredients
Meatball
- 1 pound ahi tuna fresh cut into cubes
- 1 1/2 tsp oregano chopped
- 1/2 tsp lemon zest
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/8 tsp coriander ground
- 1 1/2 tsp garlic minced
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 tsp oil
Relish
- 3/4 cup tomato diced
- 1/2 cup castelvetrano olives or other olives chopped
- 1/4 cup pickled banana peppers or pepperoncini chopped
- 2 tsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp garlic minced
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1 1/2 tsp oregano chopped
- 3/4 cup cucumber diced
- 1/2 tsp lemon zest
- 1/8 tsp salt
Yogurt
- 1/3 cup greek yogurt
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp olive oil
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1/8 tsp cumin
Pita
- 4 pita
- 2 cups romaine shredded
- cilantro as needed for garnish
Instructions
Meatballs
- Place all of the ingredients except 1 tbsp oil in the bowl of a food processor. Process the tuna until it is mostly smooth but small pieces remain. Use a 1/8 cup measure to portion the tuna. Roll each portion into balls. Refrigerate until ready to cook.
- Heat a large skillet with oil over medium heat. When the oil shimmers add the meatballs. Brown the meatballs on all sides, turning as needed. Meatballs should be cooked through when they have browned.
Relish
- Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before use.
Yogurt
- Mix all of the ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use.
Pita
- Warm the pita in the oven. Divide the romaine, meatballs, and relish among the pitas. Drizzle with yogurt and garnish with lots of cilantro leaves.
