FOOD
Why chefs are excited by the return of Britain’s bluefin tuna
Not so long ago this prized species was classed as endangered, disappearing from restaurant menus. After 70 years it’s making a comeback
Erion Karaj, chef at the Groucho Club, with a bluefin tuna caught off the coast of Cornwall
GREY HUTTON FOR THE TIMES
The Times
Down in the bowels of the Groucho Club in Soho Erion Karaj leads me into the kitchen, opens the huge fridge and points to a body bag on the floor. “That’s it,” he says. “I put my back out moving it this morning.”
From the sack a hefty-looking fish is removed for me to inspect. I have never seen an Atlantic bluefin tuna before — very few people have — but today I’m going to try it for the first time. “Most people will never have tasted bluefin tuna because it’s been endangered, so decent restaurants wouldn’t touch it,” the club’s executive chef explains.
Once fished off Britain’s coast, the native bluefin has largely been absent from our waters for 70 years. In fact, worldwide
