• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • meet the team
  • blogger resources
  • Contact Me
My Account
Member Dashboard
40 Aprons Premium (Ad Free!)

40 Aprons

Delicious, Healthy-ish Meals for the Whole Family

  • All Recipes
  • Most Popular
    • Cheryl’s Favorites
    • 30-Minute Recipes
    • Creamy Soups
    • Copycat Recipes
    • Casseroles
    • One-Dish Wonders
  • Method
    • Air Fryer
    • Baking
    • Crockpot
    • Grilling
    • Instant Pot
    • Sous Vide
  • Course
    • Appetizers
    • Cooking Basics
    • Breakfast
    • Condiments
    • Dessert
    • Main Course
    • Meal Prep
    • Side Dishes
    • Soups
  • Cuisine
    • American
    • Asian
    • Indian
    • Italian
    • Mediterranean
    • Mexican & Latin
    • Southern
Home Blog Cuisine French

Nicoise Salad

Cheryl Malik
Cheryl Malik Posted: 05/07/14 Updated: 12/08/20
5 Comments
Jump to Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

Nicoise Salad. Authentic, simple, and packed full of veggies, this true Nicoise salad is the perfect lunch or light dinner // The Stylist Quo
On our recent honeymoon to Europe, we spent a few days in Nice, where O had spent time previously and fallen in love with the coastal town. From our bright little apartment up in the hills on the Mediterranean, I could understand just why he developed a fascination with the city. From the brightly painted buildings to the strangely amazing Italian food, the fresh fish markets to the boardwalk, I started mentally planning return week-long vacations to a villa on the shore…

nice-1
nice-2
But before our trained even pulled in to the station, I knew what I wanted from Nice: a salade niçoise. I’ve been eating Nicoise salads for years, obsessed over the seared tuna, the olives, the boiled potatoes, the.. wait, what? That’s not a Nicoise salad at all?!  I stomped around Paris, eschewing salades niçoises without “real” tuna–seared, in other words–on them, only to find out that that’s a completely American interpretation to begin with! In Nice, Nicoise salads are simple, but probably not much like what you’ve had before.They typically include…

– high-quality canned or bottled anchovies or tuna, but not both
– olives, preferably Nicoise, obviously
– fava beans
– red bell pepper
– celery
– egg
– artichoke hearts

Nicoise Salad. Authentic, simple, and packed full of veggies, this true Nicoise salad is the perfect lunch or light dinner // The Stylist Quo
Notice any boiled potatoes on there? Haricots verts? Non? Real Nicoise salads don’t include any boiled veggies at all! I was taken aback to find diced red bell pepper and celery in my first Nicoise salad in Nice, but quickly learned to love the flavor combination.

There’s nothing wrong with a very Americanized Nicoise salad, and I still absolutely adore them, but an authentic dish looks a lot more like this!

Nicoise Salad. Authentic, simple, and packed full of veggies, this true Nicoise salad is the perfect lunch or light dinner // The Stylist Quo
If you can’t find fava beans, lima beans or shelled edamame will do. Feel free to add a hard-boiled egg on top, as well as artichoke hearts, if the spirit moves you. Also feel free to omit any veggies for which you don’t particularly care. I abhor celery, oddly enough, so I always leave it off!

Make this!

Hey – you’ve made it this far, so now we’re basically best friends! If you make this recipe, I’d love for you to give it a quick review & star rating ★ below. Make sure you follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, and Facebook, too!

Nicoise Salad

Prep:10 minutes
Total:10 minutes
An authentic salade Nicoise (Nicoise salad typically, here in the States), packed full of veggies and vitamin B-heavy anchovies (or tuna, if that's your thing!). Perfect for a quick lunch or light dinner.
Print Save Saved! Click Here to Remove Ads
1 serving

Ingredients

  • 3-4 leaves a few handfuls lettuce
  • 1 tomato sliced into 1/8s
  • 1/2 red bell pepper diced
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cucumber
  • 2 tablespoons fava beans or lima beans or edamame if you can't find fava beans
  • 1 tbsp a tablespoon or two of olives preferably Nicoise, but kalamata or dry-cured work, as well
  • 5 anchovy filets or half a can of good-quality tuna
  • 1 small cloves garlic chopped fine
  • 1 teaspoon mustard
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp light olive oil or salad oil vegetable oil, etc, to make 1/4 cup dressing
  • 1-2 tbsp fresh herbs such as parsley, basil, or tarragon, chopped, to taste, optional
  • 1 tsp sea salt

Instructions 

  • Sprinkle sea salt on the tomatoes and let drain in a colander while you prepare the rest of the salad.
  • To make the vinaigrette: Sprinkle a bit of sea salt over chopped garlic and mash into a paste with the back of a fork or a mortar and pestle. Set aside.
  • In a handled measuring cup, whisk together vinegar and mustard. Then, whilst whisking continuously, slowly drizzle in oil, a few drops at a time, until perfectly incorporated. Continue to drizzle in oil until you have about 1/4 cup salad dressing. Stir in garlic-salt paste. Taste, then add salt and fresh herbs to taste.

Notes

Combine all other ingredients in a large bowl and drizzle salad dressing over. Toss with tongs to coat. Serve immediately.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1g, Calories: 233kcal, Carbohydrates: 17g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 3mg, Sodium: 2528mg, Potassium: 537mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 3328IU, Vitamin C: 100mg, Calcium: 23mg, Iron: 1mg, Net Carbs: 12g

Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.

 

Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.

 

To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.

© Author: Cheryl Malik

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @40aprons on social and be sure to leave a review on the blog post!

Rate Recipe Tag Me on Instagram
Cheryl Malik

Meet Cheryl Malik

Cheryl Malik is the recipe developer, writer, and photographer behind the healthy, flavorful, family friendly recipes at 40 Aprons. She's been a blogger for 10+ years and is known for her delicious recipes and detailed recipe instructions. Cheryl is a mom of three who lives in Memphis, TN.

Read more...

You may also like...

  • This paleo Italian salad is one of my very favorite paleo salads: loaded with radicchio, roasted garlic, olives, bright and spicy peperoncinis, salami, sun-dried tomatoes, and more. Such a great paleo dinner, paleo salad, or paleo side dish! Seriously, this paleo Italian salad will become a staple in your meal plan.
    Paleo Italian Salad Recipe
  • Healthy Taco Salad ready to eat
    Healthy Taco Salad
  • Salmon Salad

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Have a question? Submit your question or comment below.

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  1. Melissa Belanger says

    Posted on 5/7/14 at 3:46 pm

    Delicious! Nicoise salad is so colorful and fun. I wish I had eaten more of these while I was France. Normally I wouldn’t even consider anchovies, but they look so perfectly salty in this salad. BTW, we should totally move there…or at least go on a girls only trip someday! You know, someday when we’re rolling in the dough!

    Reply
    • Cheryl Hurley says

      Posted on 5/7/14 at 6:00 pm

      That is MAJOR work motivation right there!!

      Reply

Primary Sidebar

What’s Popular?

Reusable meal prep trays with sweet potato, scrambled eggs, and sausage for a whole30 breakfast

Whole30 Breakfast Meal Prep

Crispy, golden air fryer tater tots in a large white serving bowl next to a small ramekin of bright red ketchup.

Air Fryer Tater Tots

Overhead view of marry me chicken in a cast iron skillet

Marry Me Chicken (Chicken in a Sun Dried Tomato Cream Sauce)

Instant pot chicken and rice in a bowl

Dreamy Instant Pot Chicken and Rice

In Season

Whole30 In-n-Out burgers close up

Whole30 Burgers – Burger Joint Style (Paleo, Low Carb)

Overhead photo of keto chicken tortilla soup in a rustic bowl

Keto Chicken Tortilla Soup (Low Carb, Gluten Free)

Air fryer chicken wings on a platter with sauce

Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings in Buffalo Sauce

Instant pot frozen chicken breast - easy chicken recipes for dinners with few ingredients

Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Breast

As seen on:

More Goodies + NO Ads!

Become a 40 Aprons Premium Member!

All the 40 Aprons content you love - now even better.

  • Member-Exclusive Recipes
  • Meal Plans & Grocery Lists
  • eBooks
  • NO ADS!
Join now

Privacy Policy

Accessibility

Disclaimers

Contact

© 2023 40 Aprons
Site Credits Designed by Melissa Rose Design Developed by Once Coupled
Back to Top
9 shares