Tuna Niçoise Salad Food

TUNA NIçOISE SALAD

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Toss the potatoes with 2 tsp oil and some seasoning. Tip onto a large baking tray, then roast for 20 mins, stirring halfway, until crisp, golden and cooked through.
• Meanwhile, put eggs in a small pan of water, bring to the boil, then simmer for 8-10 mins, depending on how you like them cooked. Plunge into a bowl of cold water to cool for a few mins. Peel away the shells, then cut into halves.
• In a large salad bowl, whisk together the remaining oil, red wine vinegar, capers and chopped tomatoes. Season, tip in the onion, spinach, tuna and potatoes, then gently toss together. Top with the eggs, then serve straight away.

SALAD NICOISE WITH SEARED TUNA

Steps:

• To make the vinaigrette: combine all ingredients in a mason jar. Screw the cap on the jar and shake the vinaigrette vigorously to emulsify. Set the dressing aside while preparing the salad so the flavors can marry.
• Cooking the potatoes, eggs, and green beans in the same pot cuts down on prep time and clean up. To do this, put the potatoes in a large saucepan, add water to cover and a nice pinch of salt; bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer the potatoes for 12 minutes to give them a head start, and then add the eggs. Place a steamer basket or colander on top of the simmering water. Put the green beans in the steamer and cover with a lid. Steam the beans for 5 minutes until crisp-tender while continuing to cook the potatoes until fork tender. Drain out the water and put the potatoes, eggs, and green beans in a colander; rinse briefly under cold water. Peel the shells off the eggs and cut them in 1/2 lengthwise.
• Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. Rub the tuna on all sides with olive oil, and a bit of the vinaigrette; season with a fair amount of salt and pepper. Lay the tuna in the hot pan and sear for approximately 2 minutes on each side; as the tuna cooks, the red meat will become whiter. Transfer the tuna to a cutting board and slice.
• To assemble the salad: combine the potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, olives, anchovies, capers, and chives in a large mixing bowl. Take the vinaigrette and give it another good shake to recombine. Drizzle the salad with enough vinaigrette to fully moisten and toss gently to coat; season with salt and pepper. Take care not to mush up the ingredients - the important thing about salad nicoise is that it is arranged nicely on a platter with all the elements keeping their individual integrity. Put the tossed salad down the center of a serving platter and lay the seared tuna attractively across the top and the eggs around the rim. Drizzle with the remaining vinaigrette and serve.

CLASSIC NICOISE SALAD

Steps:

• Put the potatoes in a medium saucepan; cover with cold water and season with salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook until fork-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and transfer to a medium bowl; drizzle with the wine and let cool. Reserve the saucepan.
• Meanwhile, bring a separate saucepan of salted water to a boil. Fill a bowl with salted ice water. Add the haricots verts to the boiling water; cook until crisp-tender and bright green, 2 to 4 minutes. Drain and immediately plunge into the ice water to cool; drain and pat dry.
• Place the eggs in the reserved saucepan and cover with cold water by about 1 inch. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then cover, remove from the heat and let stand, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, then run under cold water to cool. Peel under cold running water.
• Make the dressing: Whisk the vinegar, shallot, mustard, thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a bowl. Whisk in the olive oil in a slow, steady stream until emulsified.
• Toss the tomatoes ian a small bowl with salt and pepper to taste. Add about 1/4 cup dressing to the potatoes and toss. Quarter the hard-cooked eggs.
• Divide the lettuce among 4 plates. Arrange the potatoes, haricots verts, radishes, hard-cooked eggs and tuna on top. Pour any juices from the tomatoes into the dressing, then add the tomatoes to the plates. Drizzle with the dressing and top with the olives.

SALAD NICOISE

Steps:

• Blanch the wax beans: Plunge the beans into salted boiling water and let cook, 2 minutes. Remove and plunge into ice water to stop the cooking. Dry off completely.
• Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, capers and pepperoncini in a small bowl. Set aside.
• Drain the tuna. Leave the tuna in big chunks; do not crumble. Place the lettuce on a platter. Arrange the tuna, onions, wax beans, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, eggs, roasted peppers and olives on top. Drizzle liberally with the dressing. Garnish with the herbs and season with salt and pepper. Serve.

GRILLED AHI TUNA NICOISE SALAD

Steps:

• Trim the haricots verts, then blanch in boiling water and refresh in cold water. Drain and season with 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt, pepper and thyme, to taste. Reserve in a bowl.
• Cut the onion into 1/4-inch round slices. In a small saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil. Saute the onions until caramelized, about 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Reserve in a bowl.
• In a small bowl, toss together the roasted peppers and 1/8 cup Nigoise Salad Dressing. Reserve.
• Cut the potatoes into 1/4-inch round slices. Place in a small bowl, add 1/4 cup Nigoise Salad Dressing, and toss until well blended. Reserve.
• In a small bowl, toss together the tomatoes and 1/8 cup Nigoise Salad Dressing. Reserve.
• To make crostini: Arrange the bread slices in a baking tray. Brush with olive oil and bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 6 to 8 minutes. Allow to cool, then rub with garlic clove. For each of the crostini, spread 1 tablespoon Herbed Goat Cheese and top with 1 teaspoon Black and Green Olive Tapenade.
• In a small saucepan, over high heat, add the remaining 2 to 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil and sear tuna fillets until all sides are brown, about 1 to 2 minutes, keeping the centers rare. Remove from heat and slice each tuna fillet into 5 round slices.
• In a medium mixing bowl, toss together the mixed baby lettuces with 1/4 cup Nigoise Salad Dressing.
• To serve, divide the haricots verts, onion, bell peppers, potatoes, tomatoes, and olives into 6 portions. For each plate, arrange 3 portions of each ingredient by placing them in a clockwise fashion, starting with the haricots verts at 1, 5, and 9 o'clock positions near the rim of the plate. Continue to place the onion, bell peppers, potatoes, tomatoes, and olives between the haricots verts. Place quail egg halves over the peppers and an anchovy over the potatoes. Mound half of the lettuce in the center of each plate. Arrange the tuna slices on the side of the salad and top the lettuce with the crostini.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, garlic, and shallots. Slowly whisk in the olive oil to emulsify. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and sugar. Refrigerate in a covered container. When ready to use, whisk again.
• Yield: 2 1/2 cups
• Recipe courtesy Wolfgang Puck, Pizza, Pasta & More!, Random House, 2000 .
• In a food processor, combine all the ingredients, except the olive oil and crostini. Using the pulse button, process until coarsely chopped and well blended. Continue to process, slowly adding the olive oil. Refrigerate in a covered container. Spread on homemade crostini, recipe follows.
• Yield: 1 heaping cup
• Herbed Goat Cheese: 2 teaspoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves 2 teaspoons chopped fresh chives 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 (7 or 8-ounce) log goat cheese
• Combine the parsley, chives, thyme, and pepper and place on a flat surface. Roll the log of cheese in the mixture, coating all sides and retaining the shape of the log. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed.
• Yield: 1 log
• Oven-dried Tomatoes: 12 medium Roma tomatoes (2 pounds) 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus additional as needed 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves 6 garlic cloves, crushed 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
• In a pot of boiling water, blanch tomatoes. Drain and refresh in ice water. Drain. Peel, core, cut into quarters, and remove seeds.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper and arrange the tomato quarters on the tray, cut side down. Drizzle generously with olive oil. Sprinkle with thyme and garlic. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and sugar, and sprinkle evenly over the tomatoes.
• Bake until the tomatoes begin to shrivel, about 1 hour. When the tomatoes are cool enough to handle, transfer to a container. Pour olive oil over and cover the container. Refrigerate and use as needed.
• Yield: 1 1/4 cups

NICOISE SALAD WITH GRILLED TUNA

Steps:

• Brush tuna with lemon, olive oil, and pepper. Grill to desired degree of doneness. Set aside.
• Thoroughly combine dressing ingredients. Set aside. (We usually have a little dressing leftover).
• Heat water to boiling. Cook potatoes until tender, cool in iced water until room temperature. Remove, and pat dry. Cook green beans until crisp-tender, cool in iced water. Remove and pat dry.
• Toss salad greens and onion together. Drizzle with dressing, toss, and divide between two plates. Divide tuna between plates, and center on lettuce.
• Toss potatoes with 1-1/2 T. dressing, divide between the plates. Toss green beans with 1/2 T. dressing, and divide between the plates. Divide remaining vegetables and eggs between the plates, arranging attractively. Drizzle with dressing and serve.