Tuna Nicoise Salad

This is the Provencal classic done properly: tender green beans and new potatoes, jammy soft-boiled eggs, briny olives and just-seared tuna, all lifted by a punchy anchovy and Dijon vinaigrette. It's a generous main-course salad that feels like summer on a plate, and every element earns its place.

Nicoise is the salad that proves a plate of assembled ingredients can be a real meal. The trick is treating each element with respect: beans blanched to a squeak, potatoes still warm and dressed, eggs kept jammy, and tuna seared pink at the centre. Bring it together with a sharp, anchovy-laced vinaigrette and you have Provence in a bowl.

Ingredients

• 2 tuna steaks (approx 300g total) fresh tuna steaks — sustainably sourced; a 145g can of good tuna in oil per person also works
• 400g baby new potatoes — halved if large
• 200g fine green beans — trimmed
• 4 large eggs — at room temperature
• 200g cherry tomatoes — halved, or 3 ripe tomatoes in wedges
• 100g Nicoise or small black olives — Kalamata are a fine substitute
• 1 small red onion or 4 spring onions — thinly sliced
• 1 baby gem lettuce or a handful of leaves salad leaves — optional but traditional-ish
• 1 tbsp olive oil — for searing the tuna
• 6 anchovy fillets in oil — 2 for the dressing, the rest to scatter
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil — for the dressing
• 1 small handful fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley — torn

Method

1. Put the new potatoes in a pan of cold salted water, bring to the boil and simmer for 12-15 minutes until tender to the point of a knife. Add the green beans for the final 3 minutes, then drain everything and refresh the beans under cold water to keep them bright and crisp. Halve the potatoes while still warm.
2. For the eggs, lower them gently into a pan of boiling water and cook for exactly 6 and a half minutes for a jammy yolk. Drain and plunge straight into cold water, then peel and halve when cool enough to handle.
3. Make the dressing: mash 2 anchovy fillets to a paste, then whisk in the Dijon mustard and red wine vinegar. Slowly whisk in the 5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil until glossy and emulsified. Taste and adjust with a little more vinegar or a pinch of salt and plenty of black pepper.
4. Season the tuna steaks well. Heat the tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan over a high heat until shimmering, then sear the tuna for 1-2 minutes per side for pink in the middle, or longer if you prefer it cooked through. Rest for a couple of minutes, then slice thickly against the grain.
5. While everything is still just warm, toss the potatoes with a spoonful of the dressing so they drink it in. Scatter the salad leaves over a large platter.
6. Arrange the dressed potatoes, green beans, cherry tomatoes, olives and sliced onion over the leaves in loose groups rather than tossing them together. Nestle in the halved eggs.
7. Lay the sliced tuna over the top, drape with the remaining anchovy fillets and scatter with torn basil. Spoon over the rest of the dressing and serve straight away, while the potatoes and tuna are still warm.

Serve it with

• A crusty baguette or warm sourdough to mop the dressing
• A chilled glass of Provencal rose
• A simple aioli on the side
• Extra lemon wedges for squeezing over the tuna

Why this works

Dressing the warm potatoes lets them soak up the sharp vinaigrette from the inside, while keeping the eggs jammy and the tuna pink means every forkful has a soft, rich contrast to the crisp beans and briny olives.

Common swaps

• Swap fresh tuna for good tinned tuna in olive oil for a quicker, budget-friendly version
• Use hot-smoked salmon or seared salmon if tuna is hard to find
• Replace new potatoes with cooked butter beans for a lighter, faster plate
• Leave out the anchovies and add a splash more Dijon and a pinch of sea salt for a milder dressing

Common mistakes to avoid

• Overcooking the tuna until dry and grey; it should be seared hard and left pink in the centre
• Boiling the eggs too long, which gives chalky yolks instead of the classic jammy set
• Tossing everything together into a mush; Nicoise is arranged so each ingredient stays distinct
• Dressing the potatoes cold, so they never absorb the vinaigrette

Storage, freezing & reheating

Storage: Best assembled and eaten fresh. Keep any leftover components separate in the fridge for up to a day and bring back to room temperature before eating; dress just before serving.

Allergen notes: contains Fish, Egg, Mustard. Always check individual product labels.

Estimated nutrition

Per serving, estimated from typical ingredient values — not a substitute for precise dietary calculation.