Recipes
Salade Niçoise
We have been served many a salad said to be of Niçoise origin and we have found great variety in the ingredients on our plates. Beyond the quintessential elements typically found in this famous salad from Nice--tomatoes, olives, anchovies, garlic, and capers--one usually finds small red potatoes, green beans, hard-boiled eggs, tuna, and green lettuce leaves, topped with a Dijon mustard vinaigrette. You may prefer to add artichoke hearts, beans, chicken, and the like--all of which will make a good salad, but not a Salade Niçoise.
Dijon Vinaigrette
- 2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 4 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1-2 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 1 cup good olive oil
Whisk together, the mustard, vinegar, and lemon juice. Add garlic and whisk. Add oil, slowly, while whisking simultaneously until smooth.
Salad
- 6 small red potatoes (or more)
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cups green beans, cut into two inch pieces (or so)
- 2 heads (or more) of Romaine lettuce
- 1 can (or more) of tuna, packed in oil, drained and separated into chunks
- 1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved
- 24 good black olives (French Nyons are good), pitted
- 2-3 tablespoons capers, drained
- 3-4 hardboiled eggs, quartered lengthwise
- 6-8 anchovies
Drop potatoes (with skins) into boiling salted water. Cook until tender, 10-15 minutes. Drain, cut in half (bite-size pieces). Place in bowl, and while hot, drizzle with vinegar and, then, with olive oil. Set aside.
Drop beans in boiling salted water and cook until just tender, 3-5 minutes. Drain, run cold water over them, and drain again. Set aside.
Arrange lettuce leaves on a serving platter. Arrange potatoes, beans, tuna, tomatoes, olives, capers, eggs, and anchovies on top of the lettuce. Pour dressing over salad.
Wine pairings- Red: Southern Rhône Valley
- White: Viognier
- Other: Tavel Rosé