Nicoise Salad
This French classic is a must try salad if you love tuna as much as we do! Our version of this salad incorporates ingredients that you typically won't find in a Nicoise salad such as avocado, hearts of palm, and artichoke hearts which makes it a little more unique and fun! We love trying to mix up this salad recipe with new ingredients but using the avocado, hearts of palm, and artichoke hearts along side of the traditional ingredients has definitely become our favorite version!
Our favorite part of the salad is eating the tuna with the avocado and potatoes! A bite of those three ingredients is just so delicious! We always change up the potatoes that we use in this salad also. However, recently we’ve been using small rounds with a mix of white, red, and purple potatoes! The purple potatoes are especially yummy in this recipe. We also recommend pairing this salad with a fresh sour dough loaf of bread for the perfect touch!
So if you are feeling a little bit French inspired, we highly recommend this dish! While you can find Nicoise Salads on the menus of many restaurants, nothing beats a homemade one filled with extra ingredients that you love!
a. Ingredients for the Tuna:
2 one inch thick tuna steaks
¼ cup of olive oil
¼ cup of soy sauce
Coarsely ground black pepper
b. Ingredients for the Salad:
10 oz of mixed salad greens
1 diced avocado
10 oz of cherry or grape tomatoes
10-12 oz of French green beans cooked
6 hard boiled eggs halved or quartered
14 oz can of hearts of palm
14 oz can of artichoke hearts
16 oz bag of small round or fingerling potatoes roasted *see note
c. Ingredients for the Dressing:
½ cup of EVOO
1/8 cup of shallot vinegar
Zest and juice from 1 lemon
2 tsp of Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste
d. Directions:
Marinate tuna steaks in olive oil, soy sauce, and black pepper for an hour turning frequently
Meanwhile arrange salad ingredients; first lay salad down then arrange the avocado, tomatoes, green beans, hard boiled eggs, hearts of palm, artichoke hearts, and potatoes in sections on a large board
Sprinkle entire salad with salt and pepper then drizzle with some of the dressing; save some dressing to add later
Pre-heat skillet or grill and spray with olive oil
Cook the tuna steaks on medium-high heat for 1 ½ minutes on the first side then flip over and cook for an additional minute on the second side; remove from heat then slice immediately
Lay sliced tuna over the middle of the salad
*Note: cut potatoes in half and place in a large bowl; season with salt and pepper then drizzle with ¼ cup of olive oil; spread cut side down on a parchment covered cookie sheet; bake at 400 degrees for a half hour until brown then flip them over and bake for an additional 10 minutes
