For my sixth book, Perfect One Dish Dinners I developed a grilled version of classic Salad Niçoise, replacing grilled fresh tuna for canned. A few days ago I was craving it, so I headed to the store and got what I needed in produce, but when I arrived at the fish counter I couldn’t believe it. Fresh tuna was $24.99 a pound. I couldn’t bring myself to pay that price, and so I did what most of us would do. I got salmon instead, and it was very good
Grilled Salmon Niçoise is the perfect summer dish–simple enough for a steamy weeknight, elegant enough for company. The thick, bold vinaigrette doubles as a marinade, making this dish is just what we want our summer dishes to be– lively, fresh, smart.
So give Salad Niçoise a try with salmon instead of tuna.The savings will buy you a couple of movie tickets for one of the summer blockbusters. Too bad there isn’t much out there worth seeing!
- 1 large garlic clove or shallot, minced
- 2 tablespoons each: fresh lemon juice and Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- Salt and ground black pepper
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1½ pounds salmon fillet, cut into 4 pieces
- 4 medium boiling potatoes (about 1 pound), sliced thick
- 4 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise
- 1 pound green beans, trimmed
- 4 boiled eggs, peeled and quartered
- 16 piquant black olives, such as Kalamata
- Whisk garlic, lemon juice, mustard, vinegar, and a sprinkling of salt and pepper in a small bowl or 2-cup liquid measuring cup. Slowly whisk in ½ cup of the oil, first in droplets then in a steady stream to make thick vinaigrette. Coat salmon with ¼ cup of the vinaigrette; set remaining vinaigrette aside.
- Keeping potatoes, tomatoes, and green beans separate, toss each with remaining 2 tablespoons of oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Place green beans on a large wire rack (preferably one with grates running both directions). Heat gas grill, igniting all burners on high for at least 10 minutes, or build a hot charcoal fire. Clean grate with a wire brush, then lubricate generously with an oil-soaked rag.
- On hot grill rack place potatoes, tomatoes (cut side up), salmon (skin side up), and green beans. (If using a wire rack with grates running only one direction, make sure to set rack grates opposite the direction of the grill grate to prevent beans from falling through). Cover and grill, stirring green beans at the 5 minute mark. When green beans are spotty brown and tender-crisp (about 7-minutes) remove them and turn potatoes and salmon. Continue to cook until potatoes and salmon are cooked through and tomatoes are soft (they do not need turning), about another 3 minutes. Divide salmon, green beans, potatoes, and tomatoes among 4 plates; garnish with with eggs and olives.
- Drizzle with vinaigrette and serve warm or at room temperature.
We do this a lot at our home – with fresh salmon grilled up, or with smoked salmon. We’ve decided that we like the salmon better than Tuna!
Salmon is my favorite fish. This turned out to be very delicious!
This sounds so good. Love, love, love grilled veggies. I still have some smoked salmon in the freezer from my son’s fishing trip to Canada. Gonna try Jennifer B.’s suggestion and use that.
Wonderful flavors and beautiful presentation perfect for summer entertaining. Your site has become a go-to for my meatless meals.
Another great salmon dish! And it’s healthy to boot! I’m trying to stay healthy for a change of lifestyle, and this dish just hits the omega-3 that I need. The beans are a nice touch. Thank you so much for posting this!