Salad for dinner?
If it’s hot, sometimes a cold dinner is just what you want. This one can be served warm or cold.
How to make salade Niçoise:
Start by making homemade bread to serve on the side.
While the bread is rising and the oven preheating, make three hard-boiled eggs: gently place three eggs in a small saucepan and add cold water to cover them. Bring to a boil, and then simmer for twelve more minutes before running the eggs under cold water to stop them from cooking. Peel them and set aside to cool.
While the eggs are cooking, peel and chop three baking potatoes, or the equivalent amount of small boiling potatoes (these don’t have to be peeled). Put into cold water in a big saucepan and bring to a boil, then simmer.
Meanwhile, break the tips off a handful of green beans (string beans) and then add them to the simmering potatoes. When the potatoes are soft, drain in the colander and run cold water over them until they’re just warm, not hot. Don’t forget to keep an eye on those eggs, and put the bread in the oven as soon as the potatoes are done.
While the potatoes and green beans are cooking, arrange some chopped lettuce on a platter. Or, saute some chard or kale and use that as the bottom layer. Arrange the potatoes and green beans on top of the greens. On top of that, sprinkle the contents of a can of tuna, and/or a can of anchovies. Around the sides, arrange slices of the hard-boiled eggs, and slices of raw tomatoes, and black olives. Sprinkle liberally with salt, olive oil, and vinegar, in that order.
Vegetarian or vegan?
Neither, unless you substitute canned chickpeas for the canned tuna and capers for the anchovies. Then it is vegetarian and vegan, and also gluten-free if you don’t eat bread.
And will the salad keep?
If you’re going to make this ahead and serve it the next day, don’t add the olive oil or vinegar until just before serving. But as leftovers, it will keep for a week and make lots of yummy lunches.