Spring Niçoise Salad (Printer-Friendly)

Bright Niçoise-style salad with tuna, tender potatoes, crisp green beans and soft eggs in zesty vinaigrette.

# What You'll Need:

→ Proteins

01 - 200 g high-quality canned tuna in olive oil, drained
02 - 4 large eggs

→ Vegetables

03 - 200 g green beans, trimmed
04 - 300 g baby potatoes, halved
05 - 200 g cherry tomatoes, halved
06 - 50 g mixed salad greens (e.g., arugula, baby spinach)

→ Other

07 - 80 g black olives (preferably Niçoise or Kalamata), pitted
08 - 2 small shallots, finely sliced

→ Dressing

09 - 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
10 - 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
11 - 1 tsp Dijon mustard
12 - 1 clove garlic, minced
13 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

# How To Make It:

01 - Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the baby potatoes and cook for 10–12 minutes, until just tender. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside to cool slightly.
02 - In the same saucepan, add the green beans and cook for 2–3 minutes until bright green and tender-crisp. Drain and rinse immediately under cold water to stop cooking.
03 - Bring a small pot of water to a boil for the eggs. Gently add the eggs and simmer for 7 minutes for soft-boiled yolks. Transfer to a bowl of ice water, cool for 5 minutes, then peel and halve.
04 - In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper to create the dressing.
05 - Arrange salad greens on a large serving platter. Top with baby potatoes, green beans, cherry tomatoes, shallots, olives, and tuna, breaking the tuna into large chunks.
06 - Nestle the halved eggs on top. Drizzle the salad generously with dressing.
07 - Serve immediately, garnished with extra black pepper if desired.

# Expert Suggestions:

01 -
  • This salad is practically a secret weapon on busy spring evenings when you need something vibrant and filling in under forty minutes.
  • Once you taste the combination of creamy eggs and zippy vinaigrette with fresh beans, you'll understand why it gets requested on repeat in my house.
02 -
  • Don't rush cooling the eggs or you'll lose those luscious soft yolks that are the soul of the salad.
  • The day I finally started dressing the potatoes while still warm, it turned out the whole salad tasted brighter and more flavorful.
03 -
  • If the green beans sit too long before assembling, shock them again briefly in ice water to revive their snap.
  • A whisper of lemon zest in the vinaigrette takes the salad to a brighter place—just don't tell anyone how easy it was.
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