Salade Niçoise

For the last 180° Dining event I featured a remake of the classic Salade Niçoise.  I then featured it on FOX 31 TV to promote our “Ten ingredients in Ten minutes” challenge that we are doing in tandem with The Food TV Network to commemorate our schools Ten Year Anniversary.  Finally, I  took advantage of the same dish to present it as my next entry on Bauscher’s “Deep Plate” blog.  That’s how to get mileage out of an idea.

Salade Nicoise presentation up close

Presentation I submitted to Deep Plate

Salade Niçoise

Serves 4

Ingredients:

8 oz Ahi tuna sliced 1½” thick

½  oz Nicoise olives, pitted

2 heads of heart of romaine

1 vine ripened tomato

2 oz. fine French green beans (haricots verts)

4 new potatoes

4 whole eggs

4 white anchovy filets (Italian or Spanish)

1 tsp. Sherry Wine Vinegar

1 T. E.V.O.O.

Method:

1. Coat the Ahi tuna filet with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper
2. Heat a non-stick pan coated with a little oil on very high heat
3. Add the tuna filet and sear for about a minute, flip over and sear for another minute
4. Place tuna in the freezer while preparing the rest of the dish
5. Pit niçoise olives, by crushing them with the side of a knife, remove pit from each olive
6. Core tomato and cut into quarters, remove the seed and cuts into a small dice
7. Set a small pot of water on the stove and bring to a boil (salt water heavily)
8. Cut both ends of the French green beans and quickly blanch in the boiling salted water
9. When the beans are cooked but still a little crunchy place in cold water to stop the cooking
10. Prep new potatoes by cutting them into tube with pastry cutter and slice into ¼ in. slices, place in a pot with cold salted water and saffron
11. Bring to a simmer and cook until tender, strain and set aside
12. Hard cook eggs, by starting in cold water and bringing to a boil, remove from heat source, cover and count off 16 minutes
13. Cool the eggs with cold water. Peel eggs and set aside
14. Take white anchovy filets and roll into a turban keeping the shiny skin side facing outward
15. Place a bed of French green beans on the plate
16. Take cleaned romaine hearts and cut into 2” segments and place on top of green beans
17. Combine oil and vinegar in a bowl and whisk vigorously with a whisk
18. Disperse vinaigrette on romaine
19. Lay slices of potato on either side of romaine heart
20. Top romaine with chopped tomato
21. Slice Ahi tuna against the grain and arrange on top of romaine
22. Top sliced tuna with anchovy filet
23. Cut hard cooked eggs and arrange around the romaine tower
24. Garnish with pitted niçoise olives
25. Drizzle with E.V.O.O. and season with salt and pepper