Grilled Salmon Niçoise Salad with Basil Vinaigrette is hearty, healthy, and filled with flavor.
What more can you ask for? We start with grilled salmon and wedges of hard-cooked egg to provide a healthy portion of protein. Then we add cooked baby potatoes and green beans, marinated in basil vinaigrette. A wonderful way to check the veggie box. But my favorite flavor boosters are the sweet cherry tomatoes and briny Niçoise olives. All of these goodies are nestled onto a bed of mixed greens and drizzled with more basil vinaigrette. Yum!
My First Niçoise Salad
I simply have to share the story of my first Niçoise Salad. It was at a quaint café in Paris on my honeymoon (many, many years ago.) As it turns out, the Nicoise salad originated in France. Not that I was enlightened to that fact at the time. I probably ordered it because it’s one of the few menu items I could decipher. Instantly, I fell in love with this combination of heartiness and flavor. But this grilled salmon version beats the canned tuna version from Paris, hands down.
Grilled Salmon Niçoise Salad
Tips and Tweaks
Tuna is traditionally served in a Niçoise Salad. I like tuna, but I prefer salmon. Either works fine in my opinion. Feel free to swap in a tuna steak if that’s your preference.
Niçoise olives, the namesake of this salad, are a little more challenging to track down. But feel free to substitute Kalamata olives, which are similar, and much easier to find. (pssst…don’t tell anyone, but that’s what I used.)
Marinating the potatoes & green beans in Basil Vinaigrette infuses them with delightful flavor. You can do this step in advance and let them sit in the frig for a few hours. If you do this, I recommend bringing them back up to room temperature before assembling the salad.
Love Main Course Salads?
Here are a few additional hearty main course salads. A perfect option for summer, or anytime your body screams, “Put down that burger and have a salad!”
Thanks for adding a Star Rating (IN RECIPE) To Let Others Know What You Thought!
Grilled Salmon Nicoise Salad
Ingredients
Basil Vinaigrette
- 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinager
- 3 tbsp. finely chopped fresh basil
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp. Dijon
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 1 tsp. honey
- kosher salt & black pepper to taste
Salad
- 1 1/2 lbs. salmon fillet with skin
- kosher salt & black pepper to taste
- 1 1/2 lbs. slender green beans
- 1 lb. baby reds, baby Yukon golds, or fingerling potatoes
- 7 oz. mixed greens
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 4 eggs hard-boiled, peeled and quartered
- 1/2 cup nicoise, kalamata or other brined-cured black olives
Instructions
Basil Vinaigrette
- Put all ingredients in a salad shaker or a small jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake to combine.
Salad
- Boil green beans in salted water until crisp-tender, about 5-6 minutes. Scoop beans out of water (saving boiling water) and place in a strainer. Rinse with cold water until no longer hot, (to stop the cooking process.) Drain thoroughly. Place beans in a bowl, drizzle with some Basil Vinaigrette and toss lightly to coat.
- Add baby potatoes to the cooking water, return to boil, and cook about 10-12 minutes until tender when pierced with a knife. Drain, rinse with cold water, and then cut in half or in quarters depending on size. Place in bowl, drizzle with some Basil Vinaigrette, and toss lightly to coat. Season with salt and pepper.
- Season salmon with salt and pepper and grill, skin side down for 15-20 minutes, or until done (time will vary based on the thickness of the fillet.) Remove skin and cut into 6 portions.
- Arrange mixed greens, salmon, eggs, tomatoes, potatoes, green beans, and olives on individual plates. Drizzle with dressing and serve.
I Would Love to Hear From You