The Salade Niçoise

While it is still sunny, before the cool days begin in earnest, let me present you with the salad that hails from our  town and was made famous in the States by Julia Child:   la salade Nicoise.

If you go to a restaurant here in Nice you will find several variations on the main theme of canned tuna, canned anchovies, a hard cooked egg, and some tomatoes.  The lettuce varies but is usually served here on a bed of mesclun instead of the Boston lettuce that Julia recommends.  (Isn't Boston that insipid pale stuff we served back in the day?)

And new to me (and not to my liking) most recipes here include radishes , red or green peppers( raw), and less often, cucumbers. Indigestible to me, but if you must:  Allez y.

I have never seen potatoes or green beans used in "salade nicoise"  here in Nice itself.

We were a bit pressed today so we prepared the simplest form of this standard for lunch and added the  shallots and anchovy fillets on the side.

The killer ingredient in our salad is a variety of pink tuna in a jar that comes from Italy and can be found in specialty stores like Galerie Lafayette.

  You don't have to put vinaigrette on the fish, since this tuna comes packed in olive oil .  If you prefer less you can drain it and then run it under warm water to get  off most of the excess oil.   If you are really dedicated to watching your "ligne" you can get the tuna in water instead.



 Of course, you can add potatoes, eggs,  shallot or onion.   Always use the slimmest "haricot verts" or the good snap bean variety you have in the USA.   If no potatoes then you'll want to add some crusty bread to soak in virgin olive oil.

Bon Appetit!  Wish you were coming for lunch.