Chicken Salad Nicoise With Big-Flavor Vinaigrette

Recipe Ingredients

1 lb	454g / 16oz	Boneless skinless chicken breasts
		(or 2 cups cooked chicken)
2 teaspoons	10ml	Extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons	30ml	Cracked black peppercorns
		Kosher salt - to taste
		For The Salad
1 lb	454g / 16oz	Small red potatoes - scrubbed
1/2 lb	227g / 8oz	Haricots verts or green beans
2 lbs	908g / 32oz	Ripe tomatoes - very thinly sliced (large)
5 cups	550g / 19oz	Mesclun (mixed baby lettuces)
1/4 cup	59ml	Nicoise or kalamata olives - rinsed, drained
2		Hard-boiled eggs - yolks discarded,
		Whites coarsely chopped
1/4		Red onion - thinly sliced
		For The Basil Vinaigrette
1/4 cup	59ml	Chicken stock
1 tablespoon	15ml	Wine vinegar - or to taste
1 tablespoon	15ml	Extra-virgin olive oil
1		Garlic clove
1		Scallion - trimmed
		Anchovy fillets - (1 to 2), optional - rinsed, blotted dry
1 tablespoon	15ml	Capers - drained
16		Basil leaves

Recipe Instructions

Preheat the grill or broiler to high. Wash and dry the chicken breasts and trim off any fat and sinews. Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil and thickly sprinkle with cracked peppercorns and salt. Grill the breasts until cooked, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken breasts to a cutting board and thinly slice widthwise across the grain. If using cooked chicken, thinly slice or dice it.

Place the potatoes in a pot with cold water to cover and salt. Bring the potatoes to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Refresh the potatoes under cold water and drain. Cut any large potatoes in quarters or halves to have bite-size pieces. Snap the stems off the beans and cook them in rapidly boiling salted water until crispy-tender, about 2 minutes. Refresh under cold water and drain.

Fan the tomato slices out to cover the bottom edges of 4 large plates or a platter. Mound the mesclum at the top of the plate. Arrange bundles of haricots verts, clusters of potatoes, and piles of olives between the tomatoes and mesclum. Sprinkle the hard-cooked egg whites and sliced onion on top. Or use a different arrangement: The idea is to create a pretty, colorful salad.

Prepare the vinaigrette. Place the stock, vinegar, olive oil, garlic, scallion, anchovy fillets (if using), capers, and basil leaves in a blender and puree until smooth. Correct the seasoning, adding black pepper and salt to taste. (You probably won't need salt if you use the anchovy.) Transfer the dressing to a bowl and serve on the side.

This recipe yields 4 servings.

Content per Serving:

calories .. 297 protein .. 27 g total fat .. 7 g

carbohydrates .. 36 g sodium .. 352 mg cholesterol .. 55 mg

Source:
STEVEN RAICHLEN'S HIGH-FLAVOR, LOW-FAT CHICKEN by Steven Raichlen (c) 1996 - Viking, Penguin Group, New York, NY - 80 pages - $14.95 - As reprinted in the Jan/Feb, 1997 issue of Cookbook Digest

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