Tired of Boring Salads? Try This Niçoise Recipe!
I love a good hearty salad for lunch or dinner but I always end up just putting together the same things and getting really bored. I was having some girls over for lunch a couple days ago and my brother had just caught some incredible yellowtail so I decided to get creative and make my version of a Niçoise salad!
Pretty traditional for the most part with some fun and easy tweaks, this salad is perfect for entertaining or just because! It’s super easy to make and extremely satisfying and flavorful. Only one step to do ahead of time and that’s marinate the fish!
INGREDIENTS:
Fish & Marinade:
2-4 boneless fish filets (cod, yellowtail, mahi mahi, halibut, bass etc...)
¼ cup olive oil
4 cloves minced or pressed garlic
1 T Dijon mustard
1 tsp salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Zest of 1 lemon
Salad Ingredients:
1 can cannellini beans (drained and rinsed)
10 small baby potatoes (chopped and roasted for 15-18 minutes)
½ lb green beans (trimmed and blanched)
¼ cup kalamata or niçoise olives
2 T capers
Greens of choice for 2-4 people (I use mixed baby greens)
8 oz Cherry tomatoes (cut in half)
NICOISE SALAD DRESSING:
½ cup olive oil
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 2 lemons
1T red or white wine vinegar
½ shallot minced
1 T fresh thyme or dried oregano
2 tsp Dijon mustard
Fresh ground black pepper
Salt to taste
INSTRUCTIONS:
Whisk all ingredients for fish marinade together in a bowl. Coat fish and marinate at least ½ an hour before but preferably overnight.
Roast potatoes at 415 for 15-18 minutes & set aside to cool
While potatoes are roasting blanch green beans (boil for 2-3 minutes and immediately place in ice bath) set aside to dry
Make Nicoise dressing by adding all ingredients to a jar and shaking together to mix
Combine potatoes, green beans, cannellini beans, tomatoes, capers and olives to a medium bowl and pour generous amount of dressing over all veggies and let sit to marinade
Heat a cast iron skillet to medium/high add olive oil to coat the pan and cook the fish for 3-6 minutes on each side depending on how thick each filet is. You can also grill the fish which would be a delicious option.
Plate the lettuce and toss with remaining dressing. Add the fish and top with the marinating vegetables. Give a squeeze of lemon, salt and fresh cracked pepper to tase!
TIPS & NOTES:
Sub any oil of choice or butter to cook the fish in
Sub whole grain mustard for dijon for some added texture
Sub red onion for shallot if preferred
Blanch the potatoes instead of roast for a more traditional approach
Sub 3 hard boiled eggs for cannellini beans to omit legumes (I love doing this when my stomach needs a little break from legumes)
Sub Meyer lemon for regular when in season
Add chopped Italian parsley to the dressing for color and flavor
