Salad Nicoise

To prepare the components:

- NEW POTATOES: Wash if necessary. Place the potatoes in a pot and add enough fresh water to cover. Bring pot to a simmer and cook gently until the potatoes are fork-tender (probably around 10-12 minutes, but check as you go). Once cooked, drain the potatoes from the water, allow to cool, and then cut into slices or quarters.

- EGGS: For jammy eggs, if possible, reuse your boiling water from the green beans, or boil a fresh pot. Once boiling, gently lower in your two eggs and start a timer for 7 minutes 30 seconds. Once the time is up, remove the eggs and place in an ice bath and let chill for 3 minutes. After this 3 minutes, tap eggs on the counter to crack the shell and then peel them. (Sometimes submerging in cool water while peeling is helpful.) Once peeled, simply slice the eggs in two lengthwise. If you prefer runny yolks, cook for one minute less, and if you prefer hard boiled, cook for a full 10 minutes.

- GREEN BEANS: Trim off the stem end. Bring a small pot of salted water to the boil and blanch the green beans for about 30 seconds to a minute until they become just slightly tender, then remove them from the pot (preferably with tongs, so you can immediately reuse the boiling water for your eggs) and place in a bowl of ice water for about 15 seconds to stop the cooking completely; remove the chilled green beans from the ice bath and set aside.

- TUNA: Season with salt and pepper on both sides. Next, prepare a shallow dish with 1/3 cup of sesame seeds. (If you have them, use half white and half black sesame seeds for a more dramatic look.) Firmly press the tuna steak into the seeds in the shallow dish, coating both sides of the steak in sesame. Heat a sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add 1 tablespoon of neutral oil and then add the tuna steak. For a rare preparation: Sear for about 1 minute 30 seconds on each side (3 minutes total). Cook for longer if you prefer your fish more well done. Remove from pan and slice into thin strips.

- TOMATOES: Try to use the freshest ones you can find. Cut them in thick slices or simply quarter them.

- OLIVES: The salad gets its name from its origin in Nice, and its namesake olives are perfect in the salad. But if you can't find niçoise olives, just be sure to use another high-quality olive for this salad. If yours are not already pitted, consider removing them before adding them to the salad.

To prepare the vinaigrette:

- Simply add all the ingredients to a jar, close tightly, and shake vigorously until everything comes together. If the ingredients start to separate, just give the jar a good shake before use.

Plating:

- The idea is to make something that is visually pleasing, but this can prove a little challenging when you are simply putting vegetables on a plate. My strategy for this dish is to repeat each ingredient on the plate on its opposite side.

- For example, I put the tomatoes around 10:00 o'clock and 4:00 o'clock and made a pattern as I added ingredients, considering the color of the ingredients. I chose the most colorful tomatoes I could find and set them next to the green beans to make the colors pop as much as possible.

- Given that the tuna steak is the most luxurious ingredient in the mix, I chose to showcase it by simply placing it in the center. If you change it up, I still suggest showcasing your star protein in the center.

Budget-Friendly Tuna Swap:

- If you want a quick and budget-friendly tuna swap, use a can of tuna packed in oil instead of a tuna steak.

- Drain the liquid, and add to a bowl with 1/4 cup chopped sundried tomatoes, 1 tablespoon of minced shallots, and a pinch of salt, mix, and add to the center of your plate.