This classic Nicoise salad (pronounced "nee-swaz") is a beautiful and vibrant summer salad. Loaded with fresh crunchy vegetables, roasted potatoes, buttered green beens, hard boiled eggs and creamy avocado. Serve with a lightly seared Ahi Tuna Steak and my Lemon Vinaigrette. This Nicoise Salad is perfect for summer lunches, dinners or your next backyard dinner party!
As you may know, I grew up very close to the French border. My Father is from French decent, and I have been lucky enough to travel many times across our European borders. In France this is a very classic dinner salad. We enjoy this salad with a warm crusty baguette and a Bottle glass of chilled white wine.
The Nicoise Salad originated in the French City of Nice. In French it is called, la salad nissarda. The salad is traditionally made of tomatoes, green beans, potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, salty olives, tuna, and dressed with an olive oil based vinaigrette. This salad is summer on a platter!
I love that this salad is so versatile. By adding warm ingredients like the buttered beans and the roasted potatoes, makes this salad a main course dish. This salad vibrant, flavorful, healthy, and also very filling. Everything is so summery fresh!
NICOISE OLIVE SUBSTITUDES:
Green stuffed Olives, Castelvetrano or Kalamato Olives are great choices.
Recipe
Nicoise Salad
Ingredients
Nicoise Salad
- 2 grilled tuna steaks - marinate with salt, pepper,olive oil and thyme, and a dash red pepper flakes
- 12-16 small fingerling potatoes (or 1 small bag)
- ½ lbs green beans -trimmed
- 4 hard boiled eggs -haved
- 2 heads of butter lettuce, or Boston lettuce torn into bite-sized pieces
- 3 ripe tomatoes -sliced
- ½ cucumber -sliced
- 1 avocado -sliced
- 6 radish -sliced
- ½ cup nicoise olives, or castelvetrano olives
- salt & pepper to taste
Lemon Vinaigrette
- ⅓ cup white wine vinegar
- 1 lemon - freshly squeezed
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper (i use a mix of white, black, green and red peppercorns with my spice mill)
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 2 teaspoon dijon mustard
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon oregano -dried
Instructions
Nicoise Salad
- 1. Sear the tuna steaks. In a hot skillet add the marinated tuna steaks and sear them about 2-3 minutes on each side for a medium rare steak. The inside of the flesh should be pink. Of course if you prefer a well done tuna steak, double the cooking time.2. Hard boil your eggs.3. Half potatoes and roast in skillet with 2 tbsp. olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.4. Wash and trim the ends of the green beens. Add to a pot of boiling water, and cook until tender but still firm to the bite. This takes about 5-6 minutes. Drain the hot water. To the same pot, add 2 tablespoons butter, and season with salt and pepper. Give it a couble turns to glaze the beans.5. Wash and slice the tomatoes, cucumber, radish, avocado. Peel and half cooled eggs. 6. Arange salad greens on a large platter. Top with all the veggies, place the tuna steak in the middle, add olives, avocado and eggs.7. Serve with Lemon Vinaigrette. Enjoy!
Vinaigrette
- 1. In a mixing bowl whisk all ingredients together exept the olive oil. Slowly drizzle olive oil and whisk until all emulsified.
COMMENTS