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No-cook dinners · 18 minutes

No-Cook White Bean Niçoise

Lemony marinated white beans take the tuna’s place, and raw snap peas and jarred artichokes replace the boiled green beans and potatoes, so nothing touches a pot.

Prep
18 min
Cook
none
Total
18 min
Serves
2
Jump to recipe
VeganGluten-freeDairy-freeEgg-freeNo cooking

A classic Niçoise is a lot of pots for a salad: boiled potatoes, blanched green beans, eggs, seared tuna. This one keeps the spirit (salty olives, a mustardy dressing, lots of different things arranged on a plate) and drops the stove entirely. Cannellini beans marinated in lemon and shallot take the tuna’s place, with the same creamy, protein-rich heft.

Raw snap peas stand in for the green beans and are sweeter and crunchier anyway. Marinated artichoke hearts bring the richness eggs and potatoes usually provide, and their jar oil goes straight into the vinaigrette. It’s vegan as written, with easy add-backs if you want them.

The recipe

No-Cook White Bean Niçoise

Prep 18 min · Cook none · Total 18 min · Serves 2

Ingredients

Tap to tick off as you go.

For the marinated beans

For the vinaigrette

For the salad

Method

  1. Step 1: Marinate the beans

    Toss the beans with half the shallot, the lemon juice, oil, salt and parsley. Set aside while you prep everything else; even 10 minutes makes them taste seasoned all the way through.

  2. Step 2: Shake the vinaigrette

    In a jar, combine the artichoke oil, olive oil, vinegar, Dijon, capers, tarragon and the rest of the shallot. Shake hard until creamy and season with salt and plenty of pepper.

  3. Step 3: Prep the vegetables

    String and slice the snap peas, halve the tomatoes and artichokes, and slice the radishes. Toss the snap peas and radishes with a spoonful of vinaigrette.

  4. Step 4: Arrange the plates

    Line two plates with lettuce. Arrange the beans, snap peas, tomatoes, artichokes, radishes and olives in separate piles on top, Niçoise-style.

  5. Step 5: Dress and serve

    Spoon the remaining vinaigrette over everything, finish with more black pepper, and serve with crusty bread or gluten-free crackers if you like.

Good to know

  • Pull the string off each snap pea by snapping the stem end and zipping it down the straight side. Skip it and you’ll be chewing dental floss.
  • Rinse the canned beans well and let them drain for a minute. Leftover can liquid makes the marinade cloudy and dulls the lemon.
  • Arranging in piles isn’t just for looks. Each component stays crisp and distinct, and leftovers keep better than a tossed salad.

Swaps

Marinated artichokes only
Add 2–4 halved store-bought hard-boiled eggs (no longer vegan or egg-free)
No potatoes
1 (15-oz) can whole new potatoes, drained, halved and tossed in vinaigrette
Cannellini beans
Chickpeas or butter beans, marinated the same way
Snap peas
Thinly sliced raw fennel or cucumber

Questions people ask

What is in a Niçoise salad?

A traditional salade Niçoise from Nice includes tomatoes, olives, hard-boiled eggs and tuna or anchovies, often with green beans and potatoes. This vegetarian version keeps the olives, tomatoes and mustardy vinaigrette and uses beans for protein.

Can you eat snap peas raw?

Yes, sugar snap peas are sweet and crunchy raw, pod and all. Just pull off the tough string along the seam first.

What can I use instead of tuna in a Niçoise salad?

Marinated white beans or chickpeas are the easiest swap, with a similar creamy texture and plenty of protein. Chopped capers in the dressing add some of the briny depth tuna would bring.

Get the snap peas, cherry tomatoes and butter lettuce from a farmer.

This recipe is only as good as what goes in it. Find a farmers market or CSA farm near you, or get a produce box delivered when there’s no market this week.

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