Man's burning desire to cook (+recipe)

Grilled tuna with nicoise salad. Photo / Supplied

Even though it is Australian, we have to admit that The Great Bloke's BBQ Cookbook is a must for anyone who has ever prodded a sausage over a flame and dreamed of something more. It makes cooking on the barbecue as appropriate for regular week-night meals as for casual gatherings or special celebrations.

The recipes are focused on every good cook's mantra: use the best fresh produce available, do something uncomplicated and unfussy, and you get beautiful food every time. There are new takes on some old favourites, from the classic fillet mignon to an upmarket surf'n'turf, as well as nods to recent arrivals on the barbecue scene such as Thai beef salad and grilled tuna. And it's not just the main courses that get your attention as Kim Terakes offers tasty starters, healthy salads and irresistible desserts. Kim started the Boys Can Cook cooking school in 2004, runs aussiebarbie.com.au, and his first barbecue cookbook won Best Barbecue Book in the World at the 2008 Gourmand Awards. He has been eating, cooking and writing about cooking for more than 20 years, so is determined to get your barbecue skills beyond cooking sausages and steak.

Join Kim's barbecue club for tips and recipes at www.aussiebarbie.com.au

Grilled tuna with nicoise salad

Ingredients

8 small new potatoes
4 eggs
24 fresh green beans
4 150-200g tuna fillets
olive oil, for brushing
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 very ripe medium-sized tomatoes, cut into six or eight pieces
about 12 cos lettuce leaves, cut across in 4 cm-wide strips
about 20 small black olives
about 8 basil leaves, torn
8 anchovy fillets in oil, drained

Dressing
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
sea salt and black pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 heaped teaspoon very finely chopped red shallot
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 heaped teaspoon capers, rinsed and finely chopped

The purists find it hard to agree what should go into a classic nicoise. Kim Terakes has sidestepped the issue by re-inventing the nicoise for the barbecue, using fresh grilled tuna and adding some capers to sharpen up the dressing.

1 Steam or boil the potatoes until just cooked, then cut in half and reserve. Hardboil the eggs and allow to cool, then peel and cut into quarters. Steam or boil the green beans and refresh in cold (preferably iced) water to maintain their colour and stop them cooking further.

2 Brush both sides of the tuna fillets with a little olive oil and season with sea salt and black pepper. Place on a preheated chargrill, turning just once until cooked to medium rare. Remove from the grill and set aside to rest, loosely covered with foil, for 5 minutes while you make the dressing.

3 Mix all the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl.

4 Divide the potatoes, eggs, beans, tomatoes, lettuce, olives, basil and anchovies evenly between four plates. Place a tuna fillet on top and spoon over the dressing before serving.