How to make Nicoise Salad? (Bright and Briny flavor)

• Food: Nicoise Salad
• Writer: Lizzie Green
• Content-Type: Food Blog

This salad is a vegetarian take on the classic Nicoise, but you won’t even miss the tuna! The bright and briny flavor is provided by the inclusion of olives, artichokes, capers, and lemon vinaigrette.

When Jack and I went to Nice, the city in France where the Nicoise salad was first created, that’s when I fell in love with it for the first time.

Throughout our time there, I sought it out at each restaurant we visited. The mix of fresh vegetables from the summer, bright lemon vinaigrette, and briny olives and capers is one that I find to be incredibly tempting.

The addition of potatoes and eggs that have been hard-boiled makes the dish filling enough to stand on its own as a supper.

And when it comes to dinner during the summer, my happiness level is at an all-time high whenever it involves salad.

You probably already know that tuna is an essential ingredient in the classic Nicoise salad because you’ve had it before. White beans take the place of fish in my vegetarian take on the recipe because I am a vegetarian.

They provide the salad with an additional dose of plant-based protein, and they provide a deliciously creamy contrast to the crisp vegetables that are in the salad.

You could serve your Nicoise salad atop a bed of greens if you wanted to, but I think it tastes great just the way it is.

It features a variety of summer vegetables in a rainbow of colors, each with its distinct texture and flavor profile. This is one that I have a lot of affection for, and I truly hope you do as well.

Nicoise Salad Recipe Ingredients

Even though this recipe isn’t quite a conventional salad nicoise, it manages to incorporate all of the elements that make a constructed salad so delicious. It has a crisp flavor with a saline undertone, and it is both refreshing and pleasant. The following items are required to make it:

• Beans of the white variety serve as an alternative to the more common tuna. You can use canned food, or you can cook your own.
• Eggs poached to perfection are a must-have for every Nicoise salad.
• Potatoes: You could use any sort of little red or yellow potatoes here; they’ll turn out great. I cook them the way they have always been prepared, which is by boiling them, although potatoes prepared by grilling or roasting would also be quite tasty.
• Green beans — I find that making this dish with haricots verts gives it an extra special flavor, but you may use any type of lean, crisp green bean in its place.
• Cucumbers and radishes provide a satisfying crunch.
• Cherry tomatoes are one of my favorite additions because I adore the way their luscious texture contrasts with the crispness of the other components.
• Capers, artichoke hearts, and olives all contribute a vital briny flavor to the dish.
• Vinaigrette made with lemon juice is a quick and easy dressing that brings everything together. It has a zesty flavor because of the use of lemon juice, Dijon mustard, and olive oil in its preparation.
• Parsley, for a bright and cheery final flourish.

To make this recipe, you will need to boil the potatoes and the eggs, blanch the green beans and mix the dressing using a whisk.

The next step is to spread the veggies, olives, capers, beans, and eggs across a big platter, and then sprinkle the dressing over the entire thing. To finish, sprinkle some flaky sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste, then garnish with some chopped parsley. Enjoy!

Serving Suggestions

This Nicoise salad is delicious whether consumed on its own as a meal, especially when accompanied by a wedge of socca, focaccia, or a slice of crusty bread.

Combine it with a straightforward Caprese sandwich or a bowl of gazpacho to make a more substantial meal.

The Nicoise salad can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days after it has been made. However, if you like, you may also toss the vegetables, white beans, capers, olives, and artichoke hearts with the vinaigrette ahead of time.

I prefer to store the components individually and assemble the salad immediately before I eat it; anyway, you can do this however you choose. When you are ready to eat, add the hard-boiled eggs, sprinkle some parsley on top, and season with salt and pepper according to your preference.

Nicoise salad

This Nicoise salad dish makes for the ideal light meal during the warm summer months. However, if you would rather serve it over a bed of arugula or mixed greens, you are more than welcome to do so.

My personal preference is to enjoy this dish as a constructed salad sans greens.

Ingredients

• 8 ounces of small yellow or red potatoes
• 4 ounces fresh green beans, trimmed
• ¾ cooked white beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, halved
• 4 artichoke hearts, drained and halved
• 1 cup quartered radishes and/or sliced cucumber
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• ½ cup Niçoise or Kalamata olives pitted and halved
• 2 tablespoons capers, drained
• Lemon Vinaigrette, for drizzling
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon
• Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Put the potatoes in a big pot, cover them with cold water to a depth of about 1 inch, and bring them to a boil. Mix in one teaspoon of salt while stirring. Bring to a boil, then decrease the heat to low, and simmer, uncovered, for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the meat is tender when pierced with a fork. After draining the potatoes, cut them into halves or quarters as soon as they are cold enough to be handled.
2. After the water in the saucepan has been brought to a boil, refill it with water and place a bowl of ice water nearby. Place the green beans in a pot of boiling water for 2 minutes, after which they will be blanched. After draining, place the dish directly into the icy water. After one minute, drain the water and lay the vegetables out to dry on a kitchen towel.
3. Potatoes, green beans, white beans, eggs, artichokes, radishes, tomatoes, olives, and capers should be added to the salad after it has been assembled. Vinaigrette made with lemon should be drizzled on generously. Parsley should be sprinkled on top, and salt and pepper should be added to taste.