Nicoise Salad Dressing Recipes

SALAD NICOISE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes, and cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain and cool.
• In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, parsley, olives, onion, tuna and green beans. Refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours.
• In large bowl, toss greens with vinaigrette and top with chilled potato mixture. Garnish with eggs, tomatoes, capers and anchovies.

NIçOISE SALAD

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Boil the potatoes for about 4 minutes.
• Remove with a slotted spoon, drain, then slice them in half. (Leave the water in the pot, though; you'll use it for blanching the green beans in a few moments.)
• Heat a skillet over medium-high heat, with a bit of olive oil until it's quite hot, then place the sliced potatoes in the pan, cut-side down.
• Sear for a minute or two until the potatoes are lightly browned, then remove them from the pan and transfer to a bowl. Toss with kosher salt and set aside.
• Bring the water back to a boil, and add the green beans. Blanch for 2 minutes.
• Remove with tongs to a bowl of ice water to shock them and keep them from cooking further. Drain and dry them with paper towels and set aside.
• Combine the oil, vinegar, mustard, garlic, and anchovies in a blender or food processor. Process until smooth. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. (The anchovies are salty, so you might not need much additional salt.)
• Place the salad greens in a bowl. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the dressing and toss to coat. Arrange the greens on 4 serving plates or 1 large platter. Distribute the potato halves equally, with the browned sides facing up.
• Toss the green beans, olives, and tomatoes with enough additional dressing to lightly coat them, and arrange them on the salad.
• Divide the tuna and place it in the center of plates. Arrange the hard-boiled egg quarters, then garnish with the fresh parsley and serve. Note: Instead of the vinaigrette, you could serve a Niçoise salad with garlic aioli .

SALAD NICOISE WITH SEARED TUNA

Steps:

• To make the vinaigrette: combine all ingredients in a mason jar. Screw the cap on the jar and shake the vinaigrette vigorously to emulsify. Set the dressing aside while preparing the salad so the flavors can marry.
• Cooking the potatoes, eggs, and green beans in the same pot cuts down on prep time and clean up. To do this, put the potatoes in a large saucepan, add water to cover and a nice pinch of salt; bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer the potatoes for 12 minutes to give them a head start, and then add the eggs. Place a steamer basket or colander on top of the simmering water. Put the green beans in the steamer and cover with a lid. Steam the beans for 5 minutes until crisp-tender while continuing to cook the potatoes until fork tender. Drain out the water and put the potatoes, eggs, and green beans in a colander; rinse briefly under cold water. Peel the shells off the eggs and cut them in 1/2 lengthwise.
• Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. Rub the tuna on all sides with olive oil, and a bit of the vinaigrette; season with a fair amount of salt and pepper. Lay the tuna in the hot pan and sear for approximately 2 minutes on each side; as the tuna cooks, the red meat will become whiter. Transfer the tuna to a cutting board and slice.
• To assemble the salad: combine the potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, olives, anchovies, capers, and chives in a large mixing bowl. Take the vinaigrette and give it another good shake to recombine. Drizzle the salad with enough vinaigrette to fully moisten and toss gently to coat; season with salt and pepper. Take care not to mush up the ingredients - the important thing about salad nicoise is that it is arranged nicely on a platter with all the elements keeping their individual integrity. Put the tossed salad down the center of a serving platter and lay the seared tuna attractively across the top and the eggs around the rim. Drizzle with the remaining vinaigrette and serve.

SALADE NIçOISE

Steps:

• Make the vinaigrette:
• In a large bowl make the vinaigrette by whisking together the vinegar and the mustard. Slowly whisk in the oil in a thin stream to emulsify the mixture. Stir in the garlic and the onions. Mince the parsley and add it, with the tarragon and chervil, to the dressing, mixing well. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Make the Salad:
• Rinse the tuna, pat it dry and refrigerate it until just before cooking.
• Build a small fire in a barbecue. When the coals are red and dusted with ash, spread them out, and lay the rosemary atop them. Set the grill atop the coals. Rub the tuna on all sides lightly with olive oil, and place on the grill. Cover the grill, leaving the vents open, so the tuna grills and smokes at the same time. Grill until the tuna is lightly golden and almost cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Carefully turn the tuna and cook until it is golden on the other side and opaque through, an additional 5 to 7 minutes. The cooking time will vary depending on the heat of the fire, so check it carefully. Transfer the tuna to a plate, season it lightly all over with salt and pepper, and let it cool to room temperature. When it is cool enough to handle, carefully remove the skin and any bones. Drizzle it on both sides with about 3 tablespoons of the vinaigrette, then reserve at room temperature.
• Drain the anchovies of oil and pat them dry.
• Bring 4 cups water to a boil in the bottom of a steamer. Add half the beans, cover, and steam until they are tender firm, about 6 minutes. Remove from the steamer and let cool on a wire rack covered with a cotton tea towel. Repeat with the remaining beans.
• Transfer one-third of the dressing to a medium sized bowl.
• Bring a medium-sized pot of salted water to a boil, and add the potatoes. Cook just until they are tender through, about 15 minutes. Drain. If you want to peel them, do so as soon as they are cool enough to handle. Add them, still warm, to the one-third of the vinaigrette. Toss, and reserve.
• To assemble the salad, just before serving toss the beans and the peppers with enough vinaigrette to fully moisten them, and arrange them in the center of a serving platter. Top them with the anchovy fillets, arranging them attractively on top. Quarter the eggs, and place them, with the tomatoes, around the beans and peppers. Drizzle them with 2 to 3 tablespoons of the vinaigrette.
• Place the potatoes on another platter. Break the tuna apart into large pieces, and arrange the pieces attractively atop the potatoes. Sprinkle with the olives. Drizzle with any remaining vinaigrette, and garnish with several sprigs of parsley and chervil. Serve immediately.

SALADE NIçOISE

Steps:

• To make the dressing, mash the garlic and anchovy, if using, with a small pinch of salt on a board using the blade of a large knife, or in a pestle and mortar. Combine the paste with the mustard and vinegar, then slowly stir in the tuna oil. Set aside.
• Tip the new potatoes into a large pan of cold salted water, ensuring they're well covered. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Add the beans and cook for 5 mins, then remove with a slotted spoon and immediately plunge into a bowl of iced water to cool. Cook the potatoes for another 5 mins until tender, then drain and leave to cool. When cool enough to handle, halve or quarter them, and toss in a large bowl with 1 tbsp of the dressing. Leave to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, cook the eggs in a second pan of simmering water for 7½ mins, then transfer to a bowl of iced water to cool. Drain the beans and eggs, then peel and halve the eggs.
• Tip the lettuce quarters, cooked beans and olives into the bowl with the potatoes. Add most of the remaining dressing and gently toss. Divide the salad between two bowls, and top with the tomatoes and eggs. Flake over the tuna, then drizzle with the rest of the dressing and season.

CLASSIC NICOISE SALAD

Steps:

• Put the potatoes in a medium saucepan; cover with cold water and season with salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook until fork-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and transfer to a medium bowl; drizzle with the wine and let cool. Reserve the saucepan.
• Meanwhile, bring a separate saucepan of salted water to a boil. Fill a bowl with salted ice water. Add the haricots verts to the boiling water; cook until crisp-tender and bright green, 2 to 4 minutes. Drain and immediately plunge into the ice water to cool; drain and pat dry.
• Place the eggs in the reserved saucepan and cover with cold water by about 1 inch. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then cover, remove from the heat and let stand, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, then run under cold water to cool. Peel under cold running water.
• Make the dressing: Whisk the vinegar, shallot, mustard, thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a bowl. Whisk in the olive oil in a slow, steady stream until emulsified.
• Toss the tomatoes ian a small bowl with salt and pepper to taste. Add about 1/4 cup dressing to the potatoes and toss. Quarter the hard-cooked eggs.
• Divide the lettuce among 4 plates. Arrange the potatoes, haricots verts, radishes, hard-cooked eggs and tuna on top. Pour any juices from the tomatoes into the dressing, then add the tomatoes to the plates. Drizzle with the dressing and top with the olives.