Salad Nicoise

A good salad Nicoise can bring the aromas and taste of the Mediterranean to your table… and a good discussion.

This recipe for a Nice-style salad is controversial. Once you open the discussion with chefs you will find you are bombarded with definitive statements and strongly held opinions.

You should never have cooked vegetables,

or

don’t use potatoes.

In my view there is no correct answer, and salads are the ideal dishes to use your imagination and ring in some variations. I don’t think I ever make the same Nicoise salad twice.

Boiled eggs, anchovies and olives are the essential elements, but I feel cheated if there is no tuna as well.

Salad Nicoise Nancy Overton Buy From Art.com

Ingredients for 4 people

• 4 hard boiled eggs
• 1 200g tin tuna in oil
• 4 ripe tomatoes
• 8 parboiled snap beans
• handful of lettuce leaves
• 1/2 cup black olives
• 1 green capsicum
• 6 anchovy fillets in oil
• 50ml of vinagrette or a good french dressing
• black pepper

Method

Shell and quarter the eggs lengthwise. Core and cut the tomatoes into wedges. Seed and de-rib the capsicums and cut into strips. Drain the tuna and flake it with a fork. Rinse and drain or spin the lettuce.

Use a large flat bowl for presentation, or you can make individual salads. Put the tuna in the bottom of the bowl then progressively add the lettuce, capsicum, green beans, tomato and egg wedges, olives and anchovies. Pour over the dressing, add some ground black pepper and serve accompanied by a crusty baguette.

Wine suggestion

This dish conjures up images of Provence, so what could be better than a cool rose wine made from grenache.

Variations
Although many cooks and authors disapprove I enjoy adding cooked vegetables. Boiled cooled and an diced potatoes can be added with the tuna. You can also consider using broad beans (blanched if mature, raw if young and tender), diced cucumber, sliced spring onions or a few basil leaves. Remember with a salad exact proportions are not important, but there need to be a balance.