Three tunas pass through Maison DEHESA. Bluefin, lord of the almadraba. Albacore, with its pearly flesh, which the canners of the Bay of Biscay have worked for more than a century. And yellowfin, whose offal we ferment into garum. Each has its own temperament: all that remains is to find yours.
Bluefin, lord of the almadraba
Thunnus thynnus is the largest of the tunas, and the most coveted. Every spring it skirts the Andalusian coast on its way back into the Mediterranean, where it spawns. Fishermen have awaited it there since Antiquity; the almadraba, a labyrinth of nets anchored close to the shore, keeps that appointment alive. Our matured belly and our wild cuts come from this fishery.
Its belly, the otoro of Japanese cuisine, becomes our matured bluefin tuna belly: a very light cure, slow drying in a chamber, a hint of smoke, and that silky fat that slices into fine petals. Enjoy it as it is, or with an oyster, raw or poached.
For sashimi, tataki or tartare, we also offer it wild and frozen: the loin, saku cut, the belly, banana cut, the cheek, the secreto and the heart.
That heart, a noble cut long forgotten, lends itself to one more gesture: we dry it in the manner of Japanese katsuobushi. Dried bluefin tuna heart is grated at the last moment over a broth or rice; its texture recalls liver or sweetbreads.
Albacore, the white tuna
Smaller and paler, Thunnus alalunga owes its Latin name to its long pectoral fins. The French call it germon or thon blanc, the Spanish bonito del norte. Its pale, exceptionally fine flesh made the reputation of the canners of the Bay of Biscay.
Ours is prepared in the Spanish Basque Country. Albacore tuna belly in olive oil is the first tin made from the heart of the belly alone: tender flesh with a delicate fat, in barely pink slices. Serve it at room temperature, as it is or in a vitello tonnato.
Yellowfin, the tuna of our garum
Thunnus albacares carries on its fins the yellow that gives it its name. Maison DEHESA has always championed fish offal, and the yellowfin’s is no exception. Fermented in the Roman tradition of garum haimatum, it becomes our tuna garum, winner of the Best Of award at Gourmet Selection in 2022. A spoonful gives a sauce or a broth the full depth of umami.
To serve it like a master, read Garum, in Seven Gestures; for its history, All About Garum.
And you, which tuna are you?
If you love fat that melts on the tongue and the great tables, you are bluefin. If you prefer delicacy and the patient art of the tin, you are albacore. And if umami intrigues you, the yellowfin awaits you, at the bottom of a jar of garum.