What is the best salmon to use?

Use fresh wild king salmon, Ora king salmon, or sustainably raised, "clean" Atlantic salmon- check out Seatopia!

What do you serve with Nicoise Salad?

The salad is traditionally served with seared tuna, but here we use baked dijon salmon. For a vegan option, substitute with cannellini beans or chickpeas.

Does Nicoise Salad have anchovies?

We use anchovies in the salad dressing, but you can skip this if you prefer.

Why is it called Nicoise Salad?

Salade Niçois refers to Nice, France (in the French Riviera), where the salad originates.

Easy Delicious Salmon Nicoise Salad

Name: Nicoise Salad
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 1 h 5 min
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 12 ounces of baby potatoes, cut in half; 12- 16 ounces of fresh salmon, cut into 4 pieces (see notes for substitutions); 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil, divided; salt and pepper to taste; 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard; 3-4 eggs; 8-10 ounces green beans or haricot vert; 1 ½ cups ripe tomatoes- cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes halved (feel free to sub red bell pepper); 1 1/2 cups radishes, quartered (or sub sliced cucumber); ½ cup kalamata olives, halved (or use niçoise olives); 2 tablespoons capers; 4-6 ounces lettuce- romaine, little gems, arugula, radicchio, endive (crisp, sturdy greens hold up best) torn or cut into bite-sized pieces. Keep cold until ready to use.; 1/4 cup fresh herbs: fresh basil leaves or flat-leaf parsley; 1-2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, optional, but good.; 1 tablespoon shallot, finely minced (or add sliced red onion to the salad); 1 garlic clove, finely minced; 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice (save all the zest); 1 ½ tablespoons red wine vinegar; 1-2 anchovy fillets, finely minced, or use one teaspoon anchovy paste, or skip it altogether! (note); ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard; ½ teaspoon salt; ½ teaspoon black pepper; ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

Description

A delicious recipe for Nicoise salad using fresh wild salmon. Serves 4 as an dinner entree, or up to 8 as part of a bigger spread. If you multitask, this salad truly is pretty fast. 🙂 I can make this salad in 40 minutes, it is possible!

Ingredients

Units

Salad Ingredients

12 ounces of baby potatoes, cut in half
12- 16 ounces of fresh salmon, cut into 4 pieces (see notes for substitutions)
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3-4 eggs
8-10 ounces green beans or haricot vert
1 1/2 cups ripe tomatoes- cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes halved (feel free to sub red bell pepper)
1 1/2 cups radishes, quartered (or sub sliced cucumber)
1/2 cup kalamata olives, halved (or use niçoise olives)
2 tablespoons capers
4-6 ounces lettuce- romaine, little gems, arugula, radicchio, endive (crisp, sturdy greens hold up best) torn or cut into bite-sized pieces. Keep cold until ready to use.
1/4 cup fresh herbs: fresh basil leaves or flat-leaf parsley
1-2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, optional, but good.

Nicoise Dressing

1 tablespoon shallot, finely minced (or add sliced red onion to the salad)
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice (save all the zest)
1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1-2 anchovy fillets, finely minced, or use one teaspoon anchovy paste, or skip it altogether! (note)
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Potatoes: Place halved baby potatoes in a medium bowl, toss with a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and place on one side of a parchment-lined sheet pan. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until just tender. You’ll add the salmon to this pan.
Salmon: To the same bowl, add 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon Dijon, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, mix. Coat the salmon pieces with this mixture and set aside.
Eggs: Place a steamer basket in a pot, fill it with water to the bottom of the basket. Bring to a boil, place the eggs, cover it, lower heat to medium low, and steam for 7-12 minutes. 7 mins will yield a jammy egg, 12 minutes will be “hard boiled”. Remove eggs and place in cold water. Peel under running water and halve them.
Green Beans: To the same steamer basket, add the green beans, cover, steam 3-4 minutes, until bright green and tender. (See note) Remove from the basket and shock with cold water.
Bake salmon. When the potatoes are just tender, place the salmon on the sheet pan next to the potatoes and bake. Set your timer for 6-7 minutes, and check the salmon for doneness, continue baking until it flakes apart. Remove and flake it apart a bit with 2 forks, letting it cool.
Dressing. Whisk the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
NOTE: At this point, you could refrigerate everything and assemble the salad later that evening.
Toss. Place salad greens in a large bowl with half the herbs. Drizzle just enough dressing to lightly coat (save the rest for the top) the greens, and toss well, and if you left out the anchovy, taste for salt.
Arrange. Place the dressed greens on a large platter. Arrange green beans, tomatoes, radishes, eggs, salmon, and olives as you like. Sprinkle the eggs with salt and pepper. Spoon the remaining dressing over the veggies and salmon. Sprinkle with the lemon zest, capers and remaining fresh herbs.

Notes

Steam vs. roast: Feel free to steam the potatoes (traditional), or feel free to roast the green beans (I personally prefer how vibrant green they get when they are steamed).

No oven? During the summer months, you can leave your oven off, steam the potatoes, and pan-sear or grill the salmon.

Vegan? Skip the eggs and add avocado. Skip the salmon and add 2-3 cups beans (cannellini beans or chickpeas) and skip the anchovy in the dressing.

Prefer Ahi Tuna? Our pan-seared, fennel-crusted ahi would be fabulous here!

Nutrition

Serving Size: ¼ of the salad
Calories: 459
Sugar: 5.1 g
Sodium: 754 mg
Fat: 29.3 g
Saturated Fat: 5 g
Carbohydrates: 24.5 g
Fiber: 6.3 g
Protein: 28.2 g
Cholesterol: 183.8 mg