500 grams kingfish loin, cut down to approx. 3x3 centimetres
6 eggs
1½ cup green beans
Handful of black olives
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1½ cup cooked new potatoes
½ cup flat leaf parsley
1 baby cos lettuce
Dressing:
3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
½ cup olive oil
3 Tablespoons combined thyme and rosemary, finely chopped
Salt and pepper
Salad Niçoise (“knee-swarz”) is traditionally made with tuna, but it is magical with a kingfish loin! You could also use warehou, kingfish, trumpeter or alfonsino.
The fish can be cooked through or left rare – here we are going for the rare version and we are glad we did. This salad has everything you could ever want and more! Making a great substitute for your classic potato salad on the picnic table this summer.
Start by cooking your eggs so they are “jammy”, meaning not runny but not hard boiled. The trick is to start with fridge-cold eggs and boiling (rolling, not madly bubbling over) water. Gently pop your eggs in and set a timer for 7 minutes. Prepare cold ice water to cool the eggs as soon as the timer is up. Peel once cooled.
Now, mix all your dressing ingredients together. Take a couple of tablespoons of the dressing and rub over your kingfish loin (or whatever delightful fish you have chosen). Set aside while you prep the salad.
Chop the potatoes, beans and tomatoes into small bite-sized pieces (you want it chunky, but not so chunky that you can’t have all three on a fork at once) and add to a serving bowl. Chop up the cos lettuce and parlsey and mix all together with the dressing. Slice the jammy eggs. Pop the mixture into the serving bowl and sprinkle with olives and the sliced eggs.
Get your BBQ roaring to a medium-high heat and oil your grills up. Cook the fish on each side for 1–2 minutes. The goal here is to get a nice chargrill line across your fish and cook the first 5-millimetres of flesh.
Once cooked on each side, set aside to rest for 3–4 minutes. Slice into 5-millimetre rounds and place atop your salad.
Voila! A fish salad the whole family can toss!
Recipe by Zak and Tamar
