Niçoise Salad

If lingering over your lunch with a crisp, mineraly Chablis sounds like the perfect afternoon, you and Julia Child would have gotten along swimmingly.

Can I come, too?

Named for the city of Nice, Niçoise salad (also known as salade Niçoise) is just that. Nice. But it’s so much more.

It’s classy. It’s colorful. It’s bursting with flavors and textures.

If you’ve never had one, let me try to describe the experience of eating it in a simple sentence. Ready? Here it goes:

It’s the straight up opposite of scarfing down fast food in your car.

Not that I’m knocking that ritual. There’s a time and a place for everything (says the girl who ate a spicy chicken burrito in her car at midnight last week after a long night at the emergency vet).

A Niçoise salad begs to be enjoyed with leisure. Just look at the glorious hodgepodge of humble ingredients–several of which, in contrast to the salad’s overall freshness, are canned. But that’s the beauty of tradition.

I believe that’s also where the expression “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” comes from.

Devouring this French dish is like a flirtatious game you get to play with your taste buds. Do we want a slippery, pungent olive next? How about a buttery sliver of egg? Maybe a fluffy potato?

There are no wrong choices.

Many modern chefs have put their own ritzy spin on the recipe, and though I absolutely appreciate an elevated homage when it comes to food, let’s be honest. Julia Child would roll over in her grave if she knew folks were assembling salade Niçoise with seared ahi.

JC didn’t invent the summer salad or anything, but she is the fairy godmother of French cooking for Americans. So I stick pretty close to the majority of the elements in her recipe.

Here’s one liberty I decided to take:

Instead of preparing her French-style potato salad separately (as the original recipe calls for), I borrowed its sharp shallots and parsley and added them to the mustardy dressing that brings everything together.

Veering off the path with seasonal produce is also acceptable.

Don’t let the idea of a feisty, six-foot-tall ghost in an apron and pearls scare you off from snagging those local microgreens at the farmer’s market.

Some of the fresh veggie components of a classic Niçoise include crisp green beans, butter lettuce, and juicy tomatoes. But thin asparagus, radishes, and a mesclun in the spring, or heirloom tomatoes and cucumber for summer are a great way to make use of what’s in season.

There’s no denying that the preparation can be a bit fussy. I won’t lie to you. But I will tell you that the end result is so worth every bowl you’ll stack in your sink.

And we didn’t even take it to the most extreme end of the spectrum. Some Niçoise purists won’t even boil the potatoes in the same water as the string beans! Yikes. Couldn’t be me.

I like to live on the edge. Also, my dishwasher can only take so much.

Dressing and plating each element on its own is the other timely part of the process, but you truly want each ingredient to shine in its own right. And its hard for tomatoes to be shiny when they’re covered in tuna.

Just sayin’.

Whether it’s the repetitious task of prepping one ingredient at a time or the meticulous job of perfectly placing each caper that feels daunting, remember the reward that comes after.

The eating.

The thoughtful process of constructing a Niçoise salad parallels the way you’re meant to enjoy it. Slowly, and without a care in the world (other than who you need to ask to pass the bread basket).

As JC would say, bon appetit!

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Cooking By the Numbers…

Step 1 – Gather, Prep, and Measure Ingredients

Feel free to change up some of your veggies based on what’s fresh and in season.

Mince the shallots and chop the parsley. Trim the string beans, unless you bought a bagged ready-to-cook version (which usually comes prepped). Separate the lettuce leaves (gently tearing any larger ones so they’re bite-size), halve the cherry tomatoes, and drain and flake the tuna.

Step 2 – Boil the Potatoes and Make the Dressing

Cover the potatoes with cold water in a large pot over high heat, keeping in mind you’ll also be cooking the eggs in here and they need to be covered by at least 1-inch of water.

Bring the water to a boil, add 1 teaspoon salt, then reduce the heat to medium so the outsides don’t cook too fast. Simmer the potatoes until they’re tender enough for a sharp knife to slide right through, about 10-12 minutes.

Prep the dressing while the potatoes are cooking. If you’re not a fan of red wine vinegar, you can substitute lemon juice, white wine vinegar, or champagne vinegar for a similar acidic bite.

In a small bowl, add the mustard, shallots, parsley, 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper, and the red wine vinegar. Whisking as you pour, slowly add in the olive oil to emulsify and thicken the dressing. Season to taste with salt and set aside.

Instead of draining the water, use a slotted spoon or tongs to remove the potatoes from the pot. Set them aside and allow them to cool slightly.

Step 3 – Blanch the String Beans

Bring the water in the pot back to a boil and prepare an ice bath in a large mixing bowl nearby. Shocking the beans in the ice water stops the cooking process immediately and preserves their bright green color.

Blanch the string beans for 2 minutes, and then (using tongs or a slotted spoon again so you can reserve the water in the pot) immediately drop them into the ice bath. Remove them after 2-3 minutes and set aside.

Step 4 – Toss the Warm Potatoes with the Dressing

Bring the water in the pot back to a boil.

The vinaigrette will cling and soak into to the potatoes best while they’re warm, so you want to make sure you do this step right when they’re cool enough to handle. Halve or quarter the potatoes so they’re bite-size and then transfer them to a large mixing bowl. Drizzle in a few tablespoons of the dressing and toss to coat. Set aside.

Step 5 – Make the Hard-Boiled Eggs

Some of your ice will have melted at this point, so refresh your ice bath as much as you need.

Gently lower the eggs into the boiling water, reduce the heat to medium-high, and cook uncovered for exactly 7 minutes. Keep in mind that if you’re boiling the eggs straight from the fridge (and they’re cold instead of room temperature), they’ll need closer to 10-12 minutes.

While the eggs are cooking, set out four salad plates.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the eggs to the ice bath. Remove the eggs when they’re cool to the touch, in about 3 minutes. Crack the shells and peel under running water, halve using a very sharp knife so they slice easily, and set aside.

Step 6 – Dress and Plate the Remaining Ingredients

Begin building your salads by first tossing the lettuce leaves with a few tablespoons of the dressing in the mixing bowl where you tossed the potatoes. Once your greens are dressed, divide them among 4 plates. The leaves will act as a bed for the other ingredients, so you want to evenly spread them in a single layer.

Add the string beans to the mixing bowl, drizzle in a few tablespoons of the dressing, toss, and divide among the plates.

Repeat this process with the tomatoes by adding them to the mixing bowl, tossing with about 1 tablespoon of the dressing, then arranging on the plates.

Finally, add the tuna to the mixing bowl, toss with the remaining dressing, and evenly divide among the salads.

Step 6 – Finish Plating and Serve

Niçoise olives have a rich, briny flavor and are the best choice for this salad, but you can substitute kalamata.

Keeping the presentation clean and tight, add even portions of the dressed potatoes, egg halves, olives, and anchovy filets to each plate. Sprinkle with the capers and serve with crusty French bread.