Tuna (Or Fish or Chicken) With Ginger Shiitake Cream Sauce

Excellent, no-fail and incredibly simple. Guests are always floored by this recipe! I adapted it from Bon Appetit. Get all of your ingredients ready before you begin (mise en place), as the cooking goes quickly. Also, be sure to use regular full-fat whipping cream -- the flavor of the cream is key to this and low-fat substitutions won't work well. If you decide to substitute chicken breasts for the tuna, decrease the heat and increase the cooking time to thoroughly cook the chicken. Serve on a bed of baby greens, alongside Wasabi Mashed Potatoes. Perfection!

• Ready In: 23 mins
• Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 36  ounces ahi tuna steaks, 1-inch thick (or 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts)
• 2  tablespoons olive oil or 2  tablespoons  peanut oil
•  fresh ground pepper
• 3  tablespoons butter
• 1⁄3 cup green onion
• 2  tablespoons ginger, fresh grated
• 4  garlic cloves, pushed through garlic press
• 8  ounces shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• 2  tablespoons soy sauce (I suggest low-sodium)
• 1 1⁄2 cups  whipping cream
• 3  tablespoons lime juice, fresh squeezed
• 1⁄4 cup cilantro
• 6  cups  baby greens (optional) or 6  cups  spring greens (optional)
• 3  cups  wasabi mashed potatoes (optional)
•  cilantro (optional) or  chives, for garnishing (optional)

Directions

1. Heat oven to 200 degrees.
2. Heat a skillet on your stove to medium high.
3. Grind a generous amount of pepper onto one side of tuna steaks (skip this if using chicken and see intro for instructions).
4. Add oil to the pan. When it's very hot, add the tuna steaks, pepper side down. Cook for 1-2 minutes per side, until seared but still rare in the center. Remove from the pan and keep warm on a plate, tented with foil, in a 200 degree oven.
5. In the medium-high pan where you seared the tuna (or chicken), add butter, onion, ginger and garlic. Sautee for a minute, just until the garlic becomes translucent (don't let it brown).
6. Add shiitakes and cook, without stirring, until they brown slightly. Add the soy sauce and cream. Let it cook until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add the lime juice and cilantro.
7. Serve tuna, fish or chicken hot atop a bed of greens. Add wasabi mashed potatoes alongside. Top all with the sauce, and garnish with cilantro or chive sprigs.