In the April issue of Bon Appetit there is a feature on composed salads, all of which look good enough to make, but I had planned to make salmon anyway last night so the Salmon Nicoise it was!
…especially since I had on hand those cute tiny potatoes in purple, white, and red in the pantry.
I was able to make substitutions for some of the items, but the only thing I didn’t have was some fresh green beans so you know who went to the store for me while I started roasting the salmon. I also decided to add some small tomatoes.
This recipe calls for pan frying the capers to use as garnish, and using the oil from from that to brush the fresh salmon with before roasting…genius!
I also reallly loved the vinaigrette…read on!
This is a great dish to make for entertaining because you can have everything ready and compose it before your guests arrive. However, if you have the necessary ingredients it really is a fairly quick dinner as well.
And so pretty! And delicious! And healthy! Here you go…
Salmon Nicoise (adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine, April, 2015)
8 ounces small purple potatoes (I used purple, red, and white)
Kosher salt
4 ounces haricots verts, trimmed ( I used regular green beans)
6 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons plus ¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup drained capers, patted dry
1 pound skin-on salmon fillet
Freshly ground black pepper
4 anchovy fillets packed in oil
1 tablespoon whole grain Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon sugar
1 lemon
½ medium shallot, finely chopped
4 cups frisee or mache ( I had Romaine on hand, but next time I’ll use mache)
¼ cup nicoise olives, pitted (I used pitted calamata, you guessed it, that’s what I had)
small tomatoes cut in quarters, or halved cherry tomatoes
Place potatoes in a medium saucepan and add cold water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil, season with salt, and cook until fork-tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer potatoes to a plate with a slotted spoon.
Return water to a boil and cook the haricots verts (or green beans) in same saucepan until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a bowl of ice water. Chill until cold, about 3 minutes. Transfer to paper towels and pat dry.
Return water in pot to a boil and cook eggs 8 minutes (longer if you prefer). Transfer eggs to bowl of ice water and chill until cold, about 5 minutes. Peel; set aside.
Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a small saucepan over medium-high. Add capers and cook, swirling pan occasionally, until capers burst and are crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer capers with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain. Let oil cool;set aside.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Rub salmon all over with reserved caper oil and place on a rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Roast until medium-rare (fish will be slightly translucent in the center), 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool.
Meanwhile mash anchovies, mustard, and sugar in a large bowl to form a coarse paste. Remove peel and white pith from lemon. Working over bowl, cut between membranes of lemon to release segments. Squeeze remaining juice from membranes into bowl; discard membranes. Whisk in shallot. then slowly whisk in remaining ¼ cup oil. Season vinaigrette with salt and pepper.
Using a fork, break salmon into large flakes; discard skin. Halve reserved potatoes and eggs crosswise.
Arrange frisee (or mache or romaine) on a platter; season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with half of dressing. Top in separate piles with potatoes, haricots verts (or green beans), hard-boiled eggs, olives, tomatoes if you are using, and salmon. Drizzle salad with remaining dressing and top with fried capers.
