Nicoise Salad

Salad Niçoise (pronounced nee-suahz) is essentially a French composed salad, much like our American Cobb salad, but with tuna, green beans, and potatoes, instead of chicken, bacon, and avocado.

Salad Niçoise hails from Nice, on the Mediterranean Sea, though like so many foods we enjoy here of French origin, has changed a bit to adapt to our tastes. According to the Wikipedia the Niçoise salads are always made with raw vegetables and served with anchovies.

Nicoise salads that are served in America are typically served on a bed of lettuce and include cooked green beans and potatoes. According to our Paris insider, the Niçoise salads there are all made with canned tuna.

Depending on the establishment here, I’ve had them either with canned or with freshly grilled tuna. Like its American Cobb salad cousin, the Salad Nicoise takes some time to prepare, given all of the ingredients. This is one dish where setting up your mise en place (all ingredients chopped and ready to go) will help the salad come together smoothly.

Nicoise Salad Recipe

Ingredients

Vinaigrette

• 1/3 cup lemon juice or red wine vinegar
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 Tbsp finely chopped shallot
• 2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh basil
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh thyme
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh oregano or tarragon
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Salad

• 2 grilled or otherwise cooked tuna steaks* (8 oz each) or 2-3 cans of tuna
• 6 hard boiled eggs, peeled and quartered lengthwise
• 1 1/4 pounds small young red potatoes or fingerling potatoes
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 medium heads Boston lettuce or butter lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces
• 3 small ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into wedges
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup niçoise olives
• 2 Tbsp capers, rinsed and/or several anchovies (optional)

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