Nicoise Salad

Simple but incredibly satisfying, this classic Salade Niçoise (or Nicoise salad) is packed with delicious flavors and hearty ingredients. Perfect as a main dish and easy to divide into grab-and-go lunches.

Prep: 15

Cook: 15

Total: 30

Yield:2 large salads

Equipment

Cutting board
Sharp knife
small mixing bowl
Silicone spatula or whisk
vegetable scrub brush
2 medium pots
Large wooden spoon
Slotted spoon
2 Large bowls filled with ice water
timer
large mixing bowl
Paper towels
salad tossers
2-4 Serving bowls
Fork

Ingredients

For the Dressing

½-1 clove garlic peeled
1 anchovy optional, approximately 4-6 grams
1 small pinch salt
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
4 tablespoons oil from cans of tuna or 4 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons olive oil

For the Potatoes & Green Beans

cold water
1 tablespoon salt
1 pound small potatoes marble potatoes, fingerling potatoes, etc.
2 cups green beans rinsed, trimmed, halved

For the Eggs

cold water
½ teaspoon salt
½ tablespoon white wine vinegar
4 large eggs

For the Salad

4 heads Little Gem lettuce approximately 5 ounces each; see Notes
Nicoise olives or kalamata olives; optional, to taste
capers optional, to taste
anchovies optional, to taste
pickles optional, to taste
marinated artichoke hearts optional, to taste
3 medium tomatoes plum preferred, approximately 2 ounces each, quartered
2 5-ounce cans chunk light tuna in oil
sea salt to taste

Instructions

For the Dressing

Place ½-1 clove garlic and 1 anchovy (optional) on cutting board and sprinkle 1 small pinch salt over. Use flat side of knife blade to mash garlic, anchovy (if using), and salt together into paste.
Transfer paste into small mixing bowl. Add 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard and 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar to bowl with paste and stir or whisk ingredients together until incorporated.
Once incorporated, add 4 tablespoons oil from cans of tuna and 2 tablespoons olive oil to bowl in 1 to 2 tablespoon increments. Stir well after each addition to thoroughly incorporate oil.
When all oil has been added and ingredients have been combined into creamy dressing, set bowl aside until dressing is needed.

For the Potatoes & Green Beans

Rinse potatoes under running water and scrub away any surface dirt or impurities with vegetable brush or paper towels.
Fill medium pot with enough cold water to cover potatoes by 2 inches. Add 1 tablespoon salt to water and stir to incorporate, then add 1 pound small potatoes. Increase amount of water in pot if needed to cover potatoes so that waterline sits approximately 2 inches above top of potatoes.
Place pot on stovetop over high heat. Once water begins to boil rapidly, immediately reduce heat under pot to medium-low.
After reducing heat, add 2 cups green beans to pot and stir to submerge green beans. Simmer green beans 5 minutes, or until tender-crisp, then use slotted spoon to transfer green beans to one large bowl filled with ice water. Set bowl aside and let green beans cool.
Continue simmering potatoes 5 more minutes or until potatoes can easily be pierced with tines of fork. Once potatoes are tender, drain water from pot, then set pot aside until potatoes have cooled enough to handle.

For the Eggs

While boiling potatoes, fill second medium pot with enough cold water to cover eggs by 1 inch. Place pot on stovetop over high heat.
When water begins to boil vigorously, add ½ teaspoon salt and ½ tablespoon white wine vinegar. Stir to incorporate, then bring water back to rolling boil.
Use slotted to spoon to quickly but carefully lower 4 large eggs into boiling water. Be careful not to crack eggs on bottom of pot.
Once all 4 eggs are submerged in boiling water, set timer for 7 ½ minutes then immediately start timer.
When timer ends, immediately and carefully transfer eggs from pot to second bowl filled with ice water. Let eggs sit in ice bath at least 5 minutes, until chilled.

For the Nicoise Salad

When potatoes have cooled enough to handle but are still warm, quarter potatoes or chop potatoes into bite-sized pieces.
Add potatoes and 1 tablespoon of prepared dressing to large mixing bowl. Toss potatoes in dressing until fully coated, then set bowl aside and let potatoes cool completely.
Drain cooled green beans well and gently pat green beans dry with paper towels as needed. Add green beans to bowl with potatoes.
Rinse 4 heads Little Gem lettuce under running water, then drain lettuce and pat dry with paper towels if needed. Quarter or chop each head of lettuce, then place lettuce in bowl with potatoes and green beans.
Add desired amount of Nicoise olives, capers, anchovies, picklesand/or marinated artichoke hearts to bowl with lettuce and potatoes, then add 50% to 75% of remaining dressing. Toss all ingredients until well incorporated and coated in dressing.
Divide lettuce mixture evenly between serving bowls.
Drain water and ice from bowl of boiled eggs, then shake and toss bowl vigorously until egg shells have cracked enough that no large pieces of shell remain intact. Gently peel away egg shells and discard. Note: if needed, peel eggs under running water, using force of water to help dislodge any small shell pieces.
Once peeled, cut boiled eggs in half vertically. Add egg halves and 3 medium tomatoes (quartered) to serving bowls with lettuce mixture.
Use fork to flake tuna from 2 5-ounce cans chunk light tuna in oil, dividing tuna evenly between serving bowls.
Top salads with remaining salad dressing and season with sea salt to taste. Serve immediately.

Notes

Oil from Cans of Tuna: If you prefer to use tuna packed in water, you can substitute additional olive oil for tuna oil in the dressing. Drain the tuna very well before adding it to your salad.
Lettuce: If you can't find Little Gem lettuce specifically, you can use approximately 8-10 cups of chopped romaine lettuce or butter lettuce.
Boiled Eggs: Instead of boiling your eggs on the stovetop, try our method for air fryer hard-boiled eggs. It's foolproof and the eggs come out super easy-to-peel every time.
Meal Prep: Prepare the salad as instructed, but don't toss any components in dressing. Instead of dividing the salad between serving bowls, use airtight meal prep containers, and store portioned dressing in separate airtight containers. Keep the salads and dressing refrigerated until ready to eat. Consume within 3 days.

Nutrition

Recipe By:Cheryl Malik