Gordon Ramsay Tuna Niçoise Salad

Gordon Ramsay Tuna Niçoise Salad is made with tender green beans, baby potatoes, high-quality tuna, ripe cherry tomatoes, Kalamata olives, and a sharp Dijon vinaigrette. The result is a fresh, flavorful, and elegant dish that delivers a perfect balance of texture and savory flavor. It is the perfect complete meal for a light summer dinner or lunch and serves four people.

Try More Recipes:

• Gordon Ramsay’s Lasagne Al Forno Recipe
• Gordon Ramsay Roast Pork Loin Recipe
• Gordon Ramsay Prawn Pasta Recipe 

Why You Will Love This Tuna Niçoise Salad:

• It’s a Complete Meal: This salad is so much more than just greens. It’s packed with protein from the tuna and eggs, complex carbohydrates from the potatoes, and healthy fats from the olives and olive oil, making it a perfectly balanced, filling meal.
• Vibrant and Elegant Presentation: By arranging the components artfully on a platter, this dish looks like it came straight from a French bistro. It is the perfect recipe when you want to impress guests without complicated cooking techniques.
• Perfectly Balanced Textures: Every bite is a contrast: you get the tender, waxy potatoes, the crisp-tender snap of the blanched green beans, and the richness of the creamy egg yolk, all coated in a bright, sharp vinaigrette.
• The Dressing is Key: The simple homemade Dijon vinaigrette is wonderfully punchy and zesty. Its sharp acidity is the perfect counterpoint to the savory tuna and rich olive oil.

Gordon Ramsay Tuna Niçoise Salad Ingredients

For the Salad Components:

• 4 small waxy potatoes (like new potatoes or Charlotte), halved
• 2 cups fresh green beans (haricots verts), trimmed
• 4 large eggs
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup Niçoise or Kalamata olives
• 1/2 small red onion or 1 shallot, very thinly sliced
• 2 cans (5 ounces each) tuna packed in olive oil, drained, or 2 small tuna steaks, seared and flaked

For the Classic Vinaigrette:

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt and black pepper

How To Make Gordon Ramsay Tuna Niçoise Salad

1. Cook the basics: Place the potatoes and eggs in a pot and cover them with cold water. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 10-12 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Remove the eggs after 8 minutes and plunge them into ice water to cool.
2. Blanch the beans: While the potatoes simmer, add the trimmed green beans to the same boiling water. Cook for 3-4 minutes until they are bright green and tender-crisp. Immediately remove the beans and plunge them into the ice water with the eggs to stop them from cooking.
3. Make the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper until the dressing emulsifies (blends and thickens slightly).
4. Assemble the plate: Peel and quarter the cooled eggs. Arrange a bed of lettuce (optional) or serve the salad components directly on a platter. Place the potatoes, beans, tomatoes, olives, red onion, and quartered eggs in separate sections.
5. Add tuna and dress: Flake the drained canned tuna (or sliced seared tuna) over the salad. Drizzle the Dijon vinaigrette generously over all the ingredients.
6. Serve: Serve immediately while the components are fresh and the dressing is bright.

Recipe Tips

• Shock the Green Beans: The step of plunging the cooked green beans into ice water is crucial. This “shocks” the beans, locking in their vibrant green color and keeping them crisp-tender.
• Use Waxy Potatoes: Use waxy potatoes (like new potatoes or baby red potatoes). Starchy potatoes (like Russets) will fall apart when boiled, ruining the clean look and texture of the salad.
• Emulsify the Dressing: The key to a good vinaigrette is whisking vigorously until the oil and vinegar completely blend and turn slightly creamy. This prevents the dressing from separating on the plate.
• Don’t Overcook the Eggs: For a perfect Niçoise, cook the eggs for exactly 8 minutes after the water boils. This results in a firm white and a rich, creamy yolk.

What To Serve With Tuna Niçoise Salad?

This elegant salad is a complete meal that doesn’t need heavy sides serve it with a slice of crusty baguette or garlic focaccia for dipping into the dressing. It is traditionally paired with a cold glass of dry Rosé wine or a crisp white wine like Sauvignon Blanc.

How To Store Leftovers Tuna Niçoise Salad?

• Refrigerate (Undressed): The best way to store this salad is to keep the components and the dressing separate. Cooked components (potatoes, beans, eggs) can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
• Refrigerate (Dressed): Once dressed, the salad should be consumed within 24 hours. The acidity in the dressing will start to break down the tomatoes and green beans.
• Freeze: Do not freeze any component of this salad.

Why You Should Not Reheat It:

• Texture Loss: Heating this dish will ruin the essential crispness of the green beans and make the tomatoes and waxy potatoes turn mushy and mealy.
• Wilted Greens: If you used any lettuce, it will immediately wilt under heat.
• Flavor Profile: The dressing is designed to be sharp and bright when cold. Heating it will make the vinegar taste too aggressive and the olive oil taste heavy.

How to Serve Leftovers: This salad is designed to be served chilled or at room temperature. If you have leftovers, consume them cold directly from the refrigerator within 24 hours.

FAQs

More Recipes:

• Gordon Ramsay’s Lobster Pasta Slowed Me Down in the Best
• Gordon Ramsay Chicken Cordon Bleu (Easy Baked Recipe)
• Gordon Ramsay Chicken Salad Recipe (Easy & Creamy)

Tuna Niçoise Salad Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 complete plate

• Calories: 450 kcal
• Total Fat: 28g
• Saturated Fat: 5g
• Cholesterol: 220mg
• Sodium: 750mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 28g
• Dietary Fiber: 6g
• Sugars: 7g
• Protein: 25g

Gordon Ramsay Tuna Niçoise Salad

Recipe by Sophie LaneCourse: Salads, Dinner, LunchCuisine: American, French, MediterraneanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Calories

450

kcal

Gordon Ramsay Tuna Niçoise Salad is made with tender green beans, baby potatoes, high-quality tuna, ripe cherry tomatoes, Kalamata olives, and a sharp Dijon vinaigrette. The result is a fresh, flavorful, and elegant dish that delivers a perfect balance of texture and savory flavor. It is the perfect complete meal for a light summer dinner or lunch and serves four people.

Ingredients

• 4 small waxy potatoes (like new potatoes or Charlotte), halved

• 2 cups fresh green beans (haricots verts), trimmed

• 4 large eggs

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

• 1/2 cup Niçoise or Kalamata olives

• 1/2 small red onion or 1 shallot, very thinly sliced

• 2 cans (5 ounces each) tuna packed in olive oil, drained, or 2 small tuna steaks, seared and flaked

• For the Classic Vinaigrette:

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• 1/2 teaspoon salt and black pepper

Directions

• Cook the basics: Place the potatoes and eggs in a pot and cover them with cold water. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 10-12 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Remove the eggs after 8 minutes and plunge them into ice water to cool.
• Blanch the beans: While the potatoes simmer, add the trimmed green beans to the same boiling water. Cook for 3-4 minutes until they are bright green and tender-crisp. Immediately remove the beans and plunge them into the ice water with the eggs to stop them from cooking.
• Make the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper until the dressing emulsifies (blends and thickens slightly).
• Assemble the plate: Peel and quarter the cooled eggs. Arrange a bed of lettuce (optional) or serve the salad components directly on a platter. Place the potatoes, beans, tomatoes, olives, red onion, and quartered eggs in separate sections.
• Add tuna and dress: Flake the drained canned tuna (or sliced seared tuna) over the salad. Drizzle the Dijon vinaigrette generously over all the ingredients.
• Serve: Serve immediately while the components are fresh and the dressing is bright.

Notes

• Shock the Green Beans: The step of plunging the cooked green beans into ice water is crucial. This “shocks” the beans, locking in their vibrant green color and keeping them crisp-tender.
  Use Waxy Potatoes: Use waxy potatoes (like new potatoes or baby red potatoes). Starchy potatoes (like Russets) will fall apart when boiled, ruining the clean look and texture of the salad.
  Emulsify the Dressing: The key to a good vinaigrette is whisking vigorously until the oil and vinegar completely blend and turn slightly creamy. This prevents the dressing from separating on the plate.
  Don’t Overcook the Eggs: For a perfect Niçoise, cook the eggs for exactly 8 minutes after the water boils. This results in a firm white and a rich, creamy yolk.