Vegetarian Salade Nicoise

Cuisine

French (Nicoise-Inspired)

Servings

4

Total time

1 hr 5 min

Prep

20 min

Cook

45 min

Difficulty

hard

Ingredients

• 4 Count large eggs - 4 (count), Cooked until hard-cooked, then cooled, peeled, and quartered.
• 1 Pound baby potatoes - 1 (pound), Simmered until fork-tender, cooled slightly, then halved.
• 12 Ounce fresh green beans - 12 (ounces), Trim if needed, then cook until bright green and crisp-tender.
• 1 Pint grape tomatoes - 1 (pint), Rinsed, dried, and halved for the composed salad.
• 1 Count English cucumber - 1 (count), Rinsed, dried, and sliced.
• 5 Ounce mixed greens - 5 (ounces), Rinsed and dried well before arranging on the platter.
• 1 Can pitted black olives, drained - 1 (6-ounce can), Drained before arranging on the salad.
• 0.25 Cup extra-virgin olive oil - 1/4 (cup)
• 2 Tablespoon red wine vinegar - 2 (tablespoons)
• 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard - 1 (tablespoon)
• 0.75 Teaspoon kosher salt - 3/4 (teaspoon), plus more for cooking water, Includes 3/4 teaspoon for the vinaigrette, plus additional salt for cooking water as needed.
• 0.5 Teaspoon black pepper - 1/2 (teaspoon)

Instructions

1. Rinse and prep produce

   1. Rinse the grape tomatoes, English cucumber, green beans, and mixed greens under *cool running water* before cutting or trimming; drain and dry well. Halve the grape tomatoes, slice the cucumber, trim the green beans if needed, and keep each salad component *separate for a composed presentation*.

2. Cook the eggs

   2. Place the eggs in a saucepan, cover with cold water by 1 inch, and bring to a boil. Cover, remove from heat, and let stand *10 minutes* for *hard-cooked eggs*.

3. Cool, peel, and quarter eggs

   3. Transfer the eggs to cold water until *cool enough to handle*, then peel and quarter them.

4. Cook the potatoes

   4. Add the baby potatoes to the saucepan, cover with fresh water, and simmer until *fork-tender*, about *12 to 15 minutes*. Drain and let cool slightly, then halve.

5. Blanch the green beans

   5. In the same saucepan, bring lightly salted water to a boil and cook the green beans until *bright green and crisp-tender*, about *3 to 4 minutes*. Drain and rinse under cold water.

6. Make the Dijon vinaigrette

   6. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, the *3/4 teaspoon kosher salt*, and black pepper until the vinaigrette is *smooth and lightly thickened*.

7. Compose the salad

   7. Arrange the mixed greens on a serving platter, then compose the potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, cucumber, hard-cooked eggs, and *one 6-ounce can pitted black olives, drained*, in neat sections over the top.

8. Dress and serve

   8. Drizzle with the *Dijon vinaigrette* just before serving, keeping the salad *fresh and composed*.