Tunisian Grilled Salad Recipes

HOW TO MAKE TUNISIAN GRILLED MECHOUIA SALAD

Steps:

• Using either a grill or your oven's broiler, char the outsides of the tomato, peppers, and onions until they're completely blackened and blistered, turning frequently to char all sides. Pay particular attention to charring the onions black (the onions are dense and solid and take longer to cook). Place the vegetables in a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap to allow them to steam in their own heat for 15 minutes.
• Peel the char off of the vegetables, coarsely chop them and place them in a bowl.
• Toast the caraway and coriander seeds in a dry skillet for a few minutes until they become fragrant. Grind them into a powder in a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle. Add the spices with the olive oil and vinegar to the chopped vegetables and stir well. Salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve in shallow plates garnished as you wish.

GRILLED TUSCAN TUNA SALAD

Steps:

• For the tuna: Remove the tuna from the refrigerator 20 minutes before grilling. Heat a charcoal or gas grill to high for direct grilling. Mix together the fennel, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
• Brush the tuna with canola oil on both sides and sprinkle with the spice mixture. Grill until charred on both sides and cooked to medium doneness, about 5 minutes per side. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes. Cut into medium dice.
• For the salad dressing: Whisk together the lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, rosemary, anchovies and garlic in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Slowly pour in the olive oil while whisking, until it all emulsifies. For a sweeter and thicker texture, whisk in a teaspoon of honey at a time, until desired taste and consistency is reached.
• For the salad: Combine the beans, olives, fennel, onion and tuna in a large bowl. Add the dressing and gently toss to coat. Add the greens, basil and parsley , season with salt and pepper, and toss again.
• For serving: Mound the salad on a platter and sprinkle the remaining lemon juice over the top.

TUNISIAN GRILLED PEPPERS AND TOMATOES WITH COUSCOUS

Steps:

• Grill peppers over a hot grill or a gas flame, or under a broiler, until charred. Place in a bowl and cover with a plate or with plastic. Allow to cool.
• Grill tomatoes over a hot grill or under a broiler for about 3 minutes, until skins split and char. If tomatoes are large, turn over and grill on the other side. Small tomatoes needn't be turned. You do not want to cook them until they're overly soft. Remove from heat, place in a bowl and allow to cool until you can handle them.
• When peppers are cool enough, stem and peel. Holding them over the bowl to catch juices, seed and cut in 2-inch long strips. Transfer to another bowl and strain in juices. Peel, core and slice tomatoes. Cut slices into strips and transfer, with juices, to bowl with peppers.
• In a mortar and pestle, purée garlic with a generous pinch of salt. Add caraway, coriander and cayenne if using. Work in the lemon juice and olive oil and toss with vegetables. Add half the parsley and toss together. Taste and adjust seasoning.
• Warm couscous if desired and divide among plates or wide bowls. Spoon on pepper and tomato salad with juices in bowl. Sprinkle more parsley on top and serve.

TUNISIAN GRILLED SALAD (SELATA MISHWIYA)

Steps:

• Combine olive oil, garlic, harissa, ras el hanout, ground chile pepper, salt, and pepper in a mortar; mash into a paste with a pestle.
• Set oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Place tomatoes, green bell peppers, onion, and green chile peppers on the baking sheet.
• Cook under the preheated broiler, turning occasionally, until skins have blackened and insides are soft, about 10 minutes. Cool until easily handled, about 5 minutes. Peel, seed, and chop into small pieces.
• Place tomato mixture in a large bowl. Stir in garlic paste mixture slowly with a wooden spoon. Spoon onto a serving platter. Garnish with tuna, eggs, and olives. Squeeze 1 lemon wedge over platter. Arrange remaining wedges on the sides.

TUNISIAN GRILLED PEPPER SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat the grill to very hot then place the tomatoes, peppers, chillies and onion in the grill pan and cook for 15-20 minutes , turning once or twice until the peppers have blistered and the onions are browned. You may have to remove the chillies before the capsicums and onions are fully cooked.
• Peel and seed the capsicums and chillies then place in a food processor or blender together with the garlic, caraway seeds and salt and process briefly - about 5 short bursts.
• To serve:.
• Arrange the vegetable mixture on a serving platter, drizzle with the olive oil and lemon juice and garnish with the olives, flaked tuna and quartered eggs.

TUNISIAN GRILLED PRAWNS

Steps:

• Clean and shell shrimp, leaving tails intact. Place in a single layer in a shallow flameproof dish.
• Place the remaining ingredients, apart from the lemon wedges, in a small mixing bowl and mix well then pour over the prawns, cover with clingfilm and leave to marinate for 20 minutes up to 2 hours, turning from time to time.
• Preheat the grill to hot then grill the prawns for 4-5 minutes until they turn pink , turning a few times during the cooking period and brushing with the marinade every time you turn them. Serve immediately garnished with the lemon wedges.

TUNISIAN GRILLED SALAD

Steps:

• This dish can be made on the BBQ or on the Gas Hob, or using a kitchen blow torch. The method I will refer to uses the gas hob.
• Wash all the vegetables well leaving the skin on. Place inside the BBQ wire grilling cage or if you're feeling adventurous directly onto a wire cake rack set over the largest burner of your gas hob set at a medium flame.
• You may have to do this in batches but basically you want to blacken and blister the skin on the vegetables, charring them. Once they are evenly charred/blackened all over remove them from the heat and place them inside a ziplock bag. Leave them in there until all the vegetables have been charred. This makes the skins of the tomatoes and chillies slip off easily.
• Take the vegetables out and slip of the skins of the tomato and place them into a bowl, do the same for the green chillies. Remove the papery skin from the garlic and onion and then roughly chop the vegetables before either blitzing them together in a food processor, being careful not to do this too finely or using a hand mouli push them through to get a nice even consistancy. Alternatively you can do this using a large chopping board and good sharp knife, running your knife through them and mixing as you go on the board until it all comes together evenly
• Next add the turmeric, salt and ground black pepper to taste and a squeeze of lemon and a couple of tablespoons of really good olive oil. Mix well and taste. Adjust seasoning if required. Maybe more oil, maybe more lemon - the oil has to be good and this is an oil salad. If its too think you can add a little cold water but I never need to as I always leave the tomato seeds in giving more flavour and more juice.
• To serve add optional tuna or boiled egg and lots of crusty bread which you dip and scoop the yummy salad with. Fantastic with grilled lamb chops, chicken, or fish. Excellent spread onto a baguette and then loaded with cooked leftover roast chicken. Fab as a relish with burgers and however else you fancy it. I use mild large green chillies but you could always use a couple of fat green chillies and temper the flavour with a red/green or orange sweet pepper to add a more subtle note of heat.