Salade Niçoise
A few years ago, I had the pleasure of visiting Nice, also known as The Côte d’Azur, located on the French Riviera. This trip inspired me to make this salad, and I’m so happy to share it with all of you.
Nice, France 2011
Salade Niçoise, (pronounced Niswaz) originated in Nice, France, and makes a delightful summer “salade”, French for salad. I’ve made it in the past with freshly seared Tuna, but this time, I’m using canned tuna. There are many variations to this traditional dish, but most of them call for tuna, haricot vert, which is a French style green bean, potatoes, tomatoes, olives, hard-boiled eggs. You can also garnish it with anchovies. I use a Tarragon Dijon-Mustard Vinaigrette for dressing.
Serves: 4 Degree of difficulty: Easy
Ingredients:
- 2 cans of tuna fish, in olive oil, drained
- 10 – 12 fingerlings potatoes, boiled
- 1 handful of Kalamata olives
- 6 to 8 San Marzano Style tomatoes *
- 4-5 boiled eggs, sliced
- 16 oz. haricot vert, boiled or steamed
- Lettuce leaves
Preparation:
1) Boil eggs, peel, and set aside. (Please look for my upcoming post on how to boil and peel the perfect eggs.)
2) Boil potatoes, gently poke with knife, if it goes through easily, it’s done. Do not overcook as it will fall apart.
3) Boil or steam haricot vert, do not overcook because they will lose their vibrant color.
If you are comfortable to have 3 burners going on at once, you can cook simultaneously to save you time.
4) Wash tomatoes, lettuce, and drain well.
5) Prepare the dressing
Tarragon Dijon-Mustard Vinaigrette
- 4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
- Himalayan salt or sea salt to taste
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1/2 – 1 tsp. dry Tarragon
In a medium-sized bowl, add the mustard, salt, pepper and tarragon, slowly whisk in the oil, to emulsify it. Adjust the ingredients as necessary.
6) Now that you have done all your prepping, it’s time to plate it. Place the lettuce on the bottom of a serving dish, and arrange all the ingredients to your taste. I did a deconstructed salad, but you can also mix it all together. Add your own touch and make it yours. Drizzle with the vinaigrette for the finishing touch. I can assure you, you and your loved ones will enjoy this sumptuous and healthy summer salad. I recommend a nice Chablis (a dry Chardonnay from the Burgundy region), or a Sauvignon Blanc, a lovely Rose’ from the South of France to pair with this delectable and refreshing dish. Bubblies are always a good option if you want to get fancy.
* You can also use sliced, cut-up, or grape tomatoes.
Salade Niçoise previously made with Seared Tuna
Bon Appetit From Gina’s Kitchen
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