Classic Niçoise Salad Recipe
This easy and delicious Niçoise salad is a classic French salad recipe that you can serve as a main dish or side dish. This healthy salad is made with tuna (fresh or canned), boiled eggs, vegetables such as green beans, tomatoes, and potatoes, and more delicious ingredients.
If you’re craving a healthy salad for lunch or dinner, but want something filling and delicious, this French Niçoise Salad is the perfect choice! It has plenty of filling ingredients with full range of nutrition, from carbs, to proteins, and fibers. It’s the perfect meal, especially with the warm weather. Try also other delicious filling salads like this Beetroot and Chickpea Salad Recipe, or this Salmon Salad Recipe.
Video Recipe 📹
Watch the full video recipe to learn how to make the authentic Niçoise Salad recipe.
Prefer the written recipe? Scroll down to the recipe box 👇
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Popular and Loved: This Nicoise Salad recipe has over 200k views, and 3k likes on YouTube! Check also my YouTube channel for more recipe videos.
- Simple Ingredients: This salad has many ingredients, but all of them are easy to find and to prep!
- Make Ahead: This Salad is perfect for meal prep to make ahead for busy weekdays.
- Customizable: Personalize this salad with your favorite veggies, proteins, and fibers. You can also add more flavorings to spice it up.
What is Niçoise Salad
Salad Niçoise originates from the city of Nice in France (hence the name), also called salada nissarda in dialect.
The salad became popular in the 20th century, and the combination of ingredients change from recipe to recipe and it’s still debated what the authentic Nicoise should include.
Some variations of the recipe include ingredients such as artichokes, anchovies, and shallots, while other exclude boiled vegetables like potatoes, and green beans. No matter what your preference is, Nicoise salad is one of the best and most delicious salads you’ll try.
Substitutions and Variations
You can customize this Nicoise salad recipe or replace some of the ingredients you don’t have available. Follow these suggestions for the best outcome:
- Different Protein: Instead of tuna, you can use salmon, shrimps, shredded chicken, or even a vegan protein such as tofu, chickpeas, or seitan.
- Vegan: Skip the boiled egg and use a plan-based protein of your choice to turn this salad into a vegan or vegetarian Nicoise.
- Spicy: Add some of your favorite hot sauce or chili pepper flakes to the dressing to make it spicier.
- More veggies: Add some beans, broccoli, carrots, or even red peppers to the salad to add more vegetables and fibers.
Best Served With
Nicoise salad is a flavorful and well-balanced dish on its own, but you can pair it with complementary sides or main dishes like:
How to make Nicoise Salad
- Peel and boil the cubed potatoes and green beans until fork tender. Drain and let cool. Boil the eggs for 10 minutes, peel and set aside.
- Thinly slice the onion, cut in half cherry tomatoes and hard boiled eggs. Place all vegetables in a large bowl and set aside.
- Make the dressing: in a medium size bowl whisk Dijon mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper. While whisking slowly pour olive oil.
- Lay the lettuce leaves onto a large plate. Season the veggies with half of the dressing and add them on top.
- Cook the tuna 2 minutes from each side. Slice and place on top of the salad.
- Season the salad with salt and pepper. Drizzle the remaining dressing.
Tips and Tricks
- Use fresh and high quality ingredients for the best result and flavor.
- Don’t overcook the vegetables. They’ll get too soft and lose their shape and flavor if they get overcooked.
- If you like a runny egg yolk, soft boil the eggs by reducing the cooking time to 7-8 minutes.
- Assemble the plate in a colorful and nice presentation if you have guests.
- Serve at room temperature for the best flavor.
Make Ahead and Storage
You can prep and cook all the ingredients in advance, but you should assemble the salad only at the last minute before serving, to avoid the lettuce from getting soggy.
You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days, though the texture may change.
Common Questions
Yes, you can skip the hard-boiled eggs, and use a plant-based protein instead of tuna, such as tofu, seitan, edamame, or chickpeas.
Of course. The classic French dressing is made with oil, vinegar, and Dijon mustard, but you can also serve it with a lemon dressing or balsamic dressing.
Sure, canned tuna is preffered by many for its quick and easy preparation, but also for it’s flaky and briny texture and flavor. Choose a good quality canned tuna packed in olive oil for the best taste.
More Recipes
Try also these other delicious healthy salad recipes:
Nicoise Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 5-6 Lettuce leaves
- 4 medium potatoes
- 3 eggs hard boiled
- ½ Red onion
- 10-12 cherry tomatoes
- 1 Tuna fillet or canned tuna
- 5 tablespoons (40 g) Olives
- 7 oz (200 g) Green beans
- 1 tablespoon capers
- Parsley
For the dressing:
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ½ cup Olive oil
- 3 tablespoons Vinegar
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Prepare the veggies: Peel the potatoes, cut into chunks, place in a large pot, cover with water, season with 1 teaspoon of salt, bring to a boil and cook until fork tender. Drain and let cool. Boil the eggs for 10 minutes, peel and set aside. Cook the green beans until ready. Set aside.
- Thinly slice the onion, cut in half cherry tomatoes and hard boiled eggs. Set aside.
- Place all vegetables in a large bowl and set aside.
- Make the dressing: in a medium size bowl whisk mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper. While whisking slowly pour olive oil. Set aside the dressing.
- Mix all the vegetables with half of the dressing.
- Lay the lettuce leaves onto a large plate. Transfer the salad to the plate.
- Cook the tuna: Season the tuna with salt and pepper from both sides. Heat olive oil over medium heat and cook the tuna 2 minutes from each side. Slice and place on top of the salad.
- Cut boiled eggs in half and add to the salad. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the remaining dressing.
Video
Notes
- Different Protein: Instead of tuna, you can use salmon, shrimps, shredded chicken, or even a vegan protein such as tofu, chickpeas, or seitan.
- Vegan: Skip the boiled egg and use a plan-based protein of your choice to turn this salad into a vegan or vegetarian Nicoise.
- Vinegar: You can use white wine or red wine vinegar in the dressing, depending on preference.
- Vegetables: Add more vegetables to your liking (red pepper, broccoli, carrots, etc). Don’t overcook the vegetables. They’ll get too soft and lose their shape and flavor if they get overcooked.
- Use fresh and high quality ingredients for the best result and flavor.
- Egg: If you like a runny egg yolk, soft boil the eggs by reducing the cooking time to 7-8 minutes.
- Presentation: Assemble the plate in a colorful and nice presentation if you have guests. Serve at room temperature for the best flavor.
- Tuna: Instead of fresh tuna fillet you also can use canned tuna.
I love this nicose salad, I used canned tuna and it was delicious.