Niçoise Salad with Basil and Anchovy-Lemon Vinaigrette

Edit
Niçoise Salad with Basil and Anchovy-Lemon Vinaigrette

Here is a riff on a classic French salade niçoise. Traditionalists drape anchovy filets across the finished salad, but here, they're minced and used only in the dressing. Anchovy admirers can certainly add more for garnish — and anchovy avoiders can simply leave them out. The only cooking is boiling the potatoes and haricots verts, which can be done together in the same pot. Add a jammy egg or two if you like. Dressing the vegetables while warm helps them absorb all the good flavors more deeply, making this a salad that manages to be intense and light at the same time.

Rating

Ingredients

  • 1large garlic clove, minced
  • 2anchovy fillets, chopped
  • 1/4teaspoon salt, more as needed
  • 2tablespoons lemon juice
  • 3/4teaspoon grated lemon zest
  • 1/2teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1/3cup olive oil, more as needed
  • 1/4pound baby red potatoes
  • 1/2pound haricots verts or green beans
  • 1tablespoon finely chopped basil
  • 8radishes, cut into wedges, or 1 slender cucumber, peeled and sliced
  • 2large, ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges, or 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 2(6 or 7-ounce) cans tuna packed in olive oil, drained
  • 4hard-boiled eggs (optional)
  • 1/2cup pitted kalamata olives, sliced
  • Black pepper, for serving
  • Flaky sea salt, for serving
  • Torn basil leaves, for serving
Set base servings to enable scaling:

Directions

Make the vinaigrette: Using the flat side of a knife, smash garlic clove, anchovy fillets and salt into a paste. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in lemon juice, zest and mustard. Using a whisk, slowly pour in olive oil while stirring constantly. Adjust seasoning as needed.

Place potatoes in a medium pot and cover them with 2 or 3 inches of cold water. Salt the water and bring to a boil. When water comes to a boil, continue cooking potatoes until fork tender, 10 to 15 minutes more. Add haricots verts during the last 1 minute of cooking (if using regular green beans, add them during the last 2 to 3 minutes of cooking depending on how thin they are). Drain vegetables and let sit until cool enough to handle but still quite warm. Halve potatoes, transfer to a small bowl along with the haricots verts and dress everything to coat with some (but not all) of the vinaigrette. When completely cool, toss in chopped basil.

On a large platter or four individual plates, arrange potatoes and haricots verts, radishes or cucumbers, tomatoes and tuna, and hard-boiled eggs, if using. Scatter olives over the top and drizzle with remaining vinaigrette. Serve garnished with black pepper, flaky sea salt and torn basil leaves.

Nutrition

Info
Trans Fat: 0 gramsFat: 32 gramsCalories: 472Saturated Fat: 6 gramsUnsaturated Fat: 24 gramsSodium: 654 milligramsSugar: 3 gramsFiber: 3 gramsCarbohydrate: 12 gramsProtein: 34 grams
Salads

Source: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1015078-nicoise-salad-with-basil-and-anchovy-lemon-vinaigrette