Salmon Nicoise Salad Recipe

This Salmon Nicoise salad recipe is a main-dish salad that is perfect for a weeknight meal. Packed with crispy vegetables, briny olives, and homemade mustard olive oil vinaigrette, it is not only delicious but also visually pleasing.

Course Salad

Cuisine French

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Total Time 50

Servings servings

Calories 371kcal

Author Aysegul Sanford

Ingredients

For The Dressing:

¼ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons of lemon juice freshly squeezed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper

For The Nicoise Salad:

1 pound baby potatoes rinsed
4 large eggs
½ pound green beans ends removed cut in half
1 Persian cucumber peeled and cut into cubes
½ cup cherry tomatoes halved
½ cup Kalamata olives pitted and roughly chopped
1 avocado sliced (optional)
1 tablespoon capers optional
¼ cup chopped parsley

For the Salmon:

2 center-cut and skin-on salmon fillets - ~9-10 oz. each
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 lemon sliced ½-inch thick

Instructions

Start by making the dressing: To do so, place all dressing ingredients in a jar, put the lid on, and give it a vigorous shake. Set it aside.
To cook the potatoes: Place them in a medium-sized pot and add in water just enough to cover them by an inch. Stir in 1 tablespoon kosher salt. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Then turn down the heat to medium-low and cook until a knife inserted into a potato comes in and out easily 20-25 minutes. Remove the potatoes from the pot with a slotted spoon and place them in a bowl. Do not discard the water just yet. We will cook the green beans in it.
To par-cook the green beans place them in the hot potato water and cook for 3 minutes until they are softened but still crunchy. Drain and set them aside.
Cook the eggs while potatoes are cooking: To do so, bring 1-inch water to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat. When it comes to a boil, add in the eggs (right out of the fridge is fine). Put the lid on and cook for exactly 7 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare an ice bath by filling up a bowl with cold water and ice. After 7 minutes are completed remove eggs from the pot and place them into the ice bath to stop cooking. When they are cool enough to handle (5-7 minutes later), peel them and set aside.
To roast the salmon*: Preheat the oven to 300 F degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Using a sheet of paper towel, pat-dry the salmon fillets. Brush them lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper on each side. Place fillets onto the baking sheet skin side down. Arrange two slices of lemon underneath each salmon fillet (as shown in the photos.) Bake for 13-15 minutes in the oven or until it registers 125 degrees when the thickest part of the fish is inserted with an instant thermometer.
To assemble the salad: Drizzle half of the dressing over the potatoes while they are still hot so that they can absorb some of it. Add in reserved green beans, cucumber, tomatoes, olives, sliced avocados, and capers into the bowl.
Using two forks, gently break apart the now-cooked salmon into smaller (bite-sized) pieces. Place it on top of the salad.
Slice the eggs and add them to the bowl.
Drizzle the salad with the rest of the salad dressing. Garnish with parsley and serve.

Notes

Make Ahead Instructions: Make the salad dressing a day ahead. You can also prepare all the salad ingredients a day in advance. The only thing I would recommend doing it on the day of is to roast the salmon. I find that this salad nicoise with salmon tastes better when the salmon is cooked right before serving.
To store leftovers: The leftovers can be placed in an airtight container and stored in the fridge for one more day.
Freezing: Since there are so many different components, I would not recommend freezing this salad.
Cooking salmon: It is no secret that salmon can be cooked in several ways. While I used a low and slow cooking method in this recipe, if I can get my hands on Sockeye Salmon during its season (May through July), I usually bake or grill it, especially if I am using a whole fillet. For more information, check out my Grilled Sockeye Salmon and Baked Sockeye Salmon recipe.
Short on time? While it is not traditional, if I am short on time or don't have fresh salmon, I use packaged smoked salmon in this recipe. The smoky fish adds another (welcome) layer of flavor into the whole salad.

Nutrition