COOKBOOK REVIEW: The BBQ Cookbook by Tim Ayliffe

COOKBOOK REVIEW: The BBQ Cookbook
ABC Books
November 2017
Paperback, $35
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar

Cookbook

6 ½ /10

Assembled to accompany the Australian family film The BBQ, the first thing to notice about this compilation of recipes and hints is how anonymous it is. Sure, it has Shane Jacobson on the cover, in his role as Dazza Cook from the movie, but there’s not even a byline on the cover about who actually wrote the recipes, not until inside the back cover when a Tracy Rutherford cops a credit in the fine print.

That’s not necessarily damning – but it isn’t a great start.

The book is overtly a tie-in to the film, of course, and stills from the movie feature throughout, as well as many of the recipes credited to one or another of the characters, especially all-Aussie Dazza, Texas Jim and Andre Monteblanc – American and French barbecue specialists, respectively.

Charming as that is, this is a cookbook, so it all comes down to the food… and it’s good – basic, but good.

Seeing as The BBQ is a family film, I’ll wager they’ve pitched this book at younger viewers, teens who could use a few tops to make the most of Dad’s barbie and produce something more impressive than a couple of burnt sausages. This book will help them do it, too.

Nice work, Tracy.

Category: Book Reviews