The Algarve ran great tuna fisheries for centuries, and the bife de atum is their table legacy: a thick tuna steak pan-cooked and buried under a cebolada of onions slowly stewed soft with garlic, bay, white wine and a little tomato.
Nearby Portimão was a major tuna-canning port, and the fish remains a point of southern pride — cooked through in the traditional way, robust and oniony, served with potatoes to soak the sauce. It is one of the few meaty-feeling fish dishes on the coast, and a satisfying change from the grill.
⭐ Must-try:
Bife de atum de cebolada
Highlights
- Thick Algarve tuna steak
- Smothered in slow-stewed onions
- Garlic, bay and white wine
- A legacy of the coast's tuna fisheries
- Hearty, with potatoes for the sauce
Frequently asked questions
Is the tuna rare?
Traditionally cooked through under the onions — robust and savoury rather than seared rare.
Why tuna here?
The Algarve, and Portimão in particular, was a historic tuna-fishing and canning centre.