Salmon Salad Nicoise

Salad Niçoise is absolutely one of my favourite salads. If I am out for lunch and it is on the menu, you can bet I will be ordering it. The reason that I love this salad so much is not only because it is filled with flavours and textures, but it is also so well macronutrient balanced. With a hearty helping of vegetables, carbohydrates, protein and healthy fats it can keep you well fuelled for hours. This Salmon Salad Nicoise is my take on a delicious French classic.

The classic Niçoise salad is typically composed of tomatoes, tuna, hard-boiled eggs, olives, and anchovies, artfully arraigned on a plate and dressed with a vinaigrette. The nice thing about this salad is that it is meant to be an old stand-by and something that you can throw together with a can of tuna and any vegetables you have in the fridge. Now I have made my fair share of Niçoise salads with canned tuna, but this time I decided to mix it up with some salmon. Not only do I love salmon, but it is a fish that is really easy to cook, more so than people might think. You can easily bake it in the oven for hands-off approach, but I like to sear it really quick in a skillet for an extra crispy exterior and flaky interior.

Salmon Salad Nicoise

This salad can be made with salmon or the more classic version of tuna. Essentially any type of leafy green, size of tomato or type of potato would work, these just happen to be my favourites!

Author: Stephanie Kay
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 2 servings 1x
Category: Salads
Cuisine: Paleo, Gluten-Free

Scale

Ingredients

Salad:

2 salmon fillets
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
1 cup green beans (10–12 beans)
2 eggs
1 cup baby potatoes (6–8 potatoes)
1/2 cup olives (8–10 olives)
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered (4–6 tomatoes)
Sea salt
Fresh pepper

Dressing:

1 clove of garlic
3 tablespoon olive oil
1 lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Instructions

Prepare the dressing. Peel and chop garlic. In a small jar on container, combine garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and mustard. Shake or whisk to ensure well combined.
Cook the potatoes. Bring a pot of water to a boil, season with a pinch of sea salt and add potatoes. Cook for 12-15 minutes or until they can easily be pierced with a fork.
Cook the beans. Add the beans to the pot of potatoes with 2 minutes remaining in the cooking time. You only want to cook the beans for 2 minutes until they are bright green in colour. The beans can also be added to the salad raw, but are easier to eat when lightly cooked.
When the potatoes and beans are done cooking strain and submerge them in cold water. This is done to stop the cooking process. The beans can be added to the salad whole, while the potatoes can be cut in half.
Cook the eggs. Bring water to a boil and add eggs. Boil for 10 minutes for a yoke could through, or 6-8 minutes for a runny yoke. Once the eggs have cooked remove from boiling water, add to cold water to help cool and peel. Cut in halve to serve.
Cook the salmon. Season the salmon with salt and pepper on both sides. In a hot pan, add olive oil and add salmon skin side down. Cook for 4 minutes and then flip and cook for another 2 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Prepare the salads. Add chopped romaine to a bowl, drizzle with 1 tbsp. of dressing and toss to coat.
Add the dressed lettuce to a plate or bowl, and top with cooked salmon, egg, potatoes, tomatoes, beans and olives. The salmon can be added to the salad hot or cold, my preference is cold.
Drizzle salads with remaining dressing and season with salt and pepper as needed.
Serve immediately and enjoy!