Salad Nicoise
By: Taylor Davies
Published: Friday, December 4, 2009 - 1:30pm

Ingredients




Vinaigrette:
1/2 cup lemon juice
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium shallot, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil leaves
2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano leaves
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Salad:
2 ounces grilled or otherwise cooked tuna steaks* (8  each) or 2-3 cans of tuna
6 hard boiled eggs, peeled and either halved or quartered
10 inches small new red potatoes (each about 2 inches  diameter, about 1 ¼ pounds total), each
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 mediums heads Boston lettuce or butter lettuce, leaves washed, dried, and torn into bite
3 smalls ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into eighths
1 small red onion, sliced very thin
8 ounces green beans, stem ends trimmed and each bean halved crosswise
1/4 cup niçoise olives
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed and/or several anchovies (optional)

Preparation

1 Marinate tuna steaks in a little olive oil for an hour. Heat a large skillet on medium high heat, or place on a hot grill. Cook the steaks 2 to 3 minutes on each side until cooked through. 2 Whisk lemon juice, oil, shallot, thyme, basil, oregano, and mustard in medium bowl; season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside. 3 Bring potatoes and 4 quarts cold water to boil in a large pot. Add 1 tablespoon salt and cook until potatoes are tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer potatoes to a medium bowl with a slotted spoon (do not discard boiling water). Toss warm potatoes with 1/4 cup vinaigrette; set aside. 4 While potatoes are cooking, toss lettuce with 1/4 cup vinaigrette in large bowl until coated. Arrange bed of lettuce on a serving platter. Cut tuna into 1/2-inch thick slices, coat with vinaigrette. Mound tuna in center of lettuce. Toss tomatoes, red onion, 3 tablespoons vinaigrette, and salt and pepper to taste in bowl; arrange tomato-onion mixture on the lettuce bed. Arrange reserved potatoes in a mound at edge of lettuce bed. 5 Return water to boil; add 1 tablespoon salt and green beans. Cook until tender but crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Drain beans, transfer to reserved ice water, and let stand until just cool, about 30 seconds; dry beans well. Toss beans, 3 tablespoons vinaigrette, and salt and pepper to taste; arrange in a mound at edge of lettuce bed. 6 Arrange hard boiled eggs, olives, and anchovies (if using) in mounds on the lettuce bed. Drizzle eggs with remaining 2 tablespoons dressing, sprinkle entire salad with capers (if using), and serve immediately.

Comments:
Melissa Peterman

Ooh delicious- it seems like every nicoise salad only suggests canned tuna, but I love the marinated tuna steak suggestion.
Taylor Davies

I spent a semester in the south of France, and this salad is such a staple down there.  Every time I have it back in the states, it takes me back to the Cote d'Azur!