Classic Niçoise Salad

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The legendary composed salad from the French Riviera, featuring crisp-tender haricots verts, waxy potatoes, oil-packed tuna, and briny Niçoise olives. Authentic versions skip the lettuce and rely on peak-summer tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and a punchy shallot vinaigrette to tie everything together.

Nutrition Facts

Per serving (estimated)

• 465 kcalCalories
• 28 gFat
• 5 gSaturated Fat
• 32 gCarbs
• 6 gFiber
• 5 gSugar
• 24 gProtein
• 780 mgSodium
• 920 mgPotassium
• 110 mgCalcium
• 4 mgIron
• 22 mgVitamin C
• 280 mcgVitamin A

Ingredients

For the salad

• 1 lb baby new potatoes (fingerlings or petites), halved
• 8 oz haricots verts (thin French green beans), trimmed
• 4 large eggs
• 2 large ripe heirloom or vine tomatoes, cut into wedges
• 1 small cucumber, peeled and sliced (optional, regional)
• 4 radishes, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup small black Niçoise olives
• 1 can (5 oz) high-quality tuna in olive oil, drained and flaked
• 8 oil-packed anchovy fillets
• 2 tbsp capers, rinsed
• Fresh basil leaves, for garnish

For the shallot vinaigrette

• 1 small shallot, finely minced
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 small garlic clove, grated

Directions

1. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook for 10-12 minutes until just tender when pierced. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a bowl. Add the green beans to the same water and blanch 3-4 minutes until bright green and crisp-tender, then shock in ice water and drain.
2. Lower the eggs gently into the boiling water and cook exactly 9 minutes for jammy yolks. Transfer to ice water, peel, and quarter lengthwise.
3. Make the vinaigrette: whisk shallot, Dijon, vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic, and lemon juice in a small bowl. Slowly stream in olive oil while whisking until emulsified. Taste and adjust seasoning.
4. In a large shallow bowl or platter, arrange the potatoes and green beans. Drizzle with about one-third of the vinaigrette while still warm and toss gently.
5. Artistically arrange the tomato wedges, cucumber slices, radishes, egg quarters, tuna flakes, olives, anchovy fillets, and capers over the beans and potatoes in distinct sections rather than tossing them together.
6. Drizzle the remaining vinaigrette over the arranged vegetables and fish, scatter fresh basil leaves across the top, finish with a final crack of black pepper, and serve immediately at room temperature.
7. Encourage diners to gently combine everything on their own plates so the tomatoes don't get bruised and the tuna stays intact.

Cook’s Notes

• Authentic Niçoise salad never contains lettuce, cooked vegetables like peas or carrots, or grilled meats; purists in Nice consider these American additions sacrilegious.
• Use the best oil-packed tuna you can find, such as Ortiz or Colatura-style Italian tuna, since it carries the entire dish's flavor.
• Bring tomatoes to room temperature before assembling so they release their full aroma and sweetness.
• Anchovies are essential, not optional; they dissolve slightly into the vinaigrette and provide the signature umami backbone.
• For a more elegant presentation, use a wide white platter and keep the ingredients in separate clusters like a mosaic rather than mixing them.

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