Craving a delicious, plant-based twist on a classic Nicoise salad? This Vegan Nicoise Salad is packed with nutritious veggies and plant-based protein. With colorful veggies, tender white beans, and a zesty Dijon vinaigrette, this salad is sure to satisfy your taste buds and leave you feeling energized. Perfect for a light lunch or dinner, vegan Nicoise salad is the ultimate healthy and tasty meal.

Colorful vegan nicoise salad with lemon vinaigrette. Colorful sections of roasted potatoes, roasted red peppers, asparagus, radish, olives and white beans.

Jump to:

Why you’ll love this recipe
Ingredients and Substitutions
How to make it
Nicoise Dressing
Debra’s Pro Tips
📖 Recipe
MEAL PREP AND STORAGE

Traditional Nicoise contains anchovies, tuna and hard boiled eggs…but this vegan version loads up on plant based protein and fiber for a splendid main dish salad that you will ADORE. You’ll serve this Vegan Salad Nicoise for a weeknight dinner, on the brunch buffet menu and as a mason jar salad to take with you to picnics or work.

Why you’ll love this recipe

close up of a portion of plattered nicoise salad showing the roasted herby potatoes.

Those potatoes! Super yum…they double as a breakfast potatoes recipe. With all the mustard and spices they’re so good! Serve those with scrambled tofu..DELISH!
Versatile: Use the veggies you LOVE. Not a fan of roasted red peppers? Swap with juicy red tomatoes. Small white beans hard to find? Use kidney beans or beluga lentils instead. Prefer the crunch of cucumbers to radish? Go for it!
Fiber: The fiber in this plant based salad will help keep your gut happy and your bowels regular.
Easy Dijon Vinaigrette: Delicious Nicoise salad dressing uses just 4 ingredients.
Pantry staples: hearts of palm, roasted red peppers, canned beans and olives are staples in my pantry.

Ingredients and Substitutions

People seem to have strong opinions as to what should and what should not go into a Salad Nicoise. I’ll tell you what I like to put into mine, and please, let me know in the comments below what your must have Nicoise salad ingredients are!

White dishes with separate ingredients for nicoise salad: roasted red pepper strips, roasted potatoes, lemon vinaigrette, roasted asparagus, small white beans, kalamata olives, slice hearts of palm, sliced radish and romaine lettuce.

Baby Potatoes: Roasted with Herbes de Provence and dijon mustard to add classic salad nicoise flavors. I used small red potatoes, but yukon gold are also delicious in this recipe.
Small White Beans: Plant based protein and fiber…and that will be true if you substitute any other bean or lentil too. I’ve included tofu shawarma in this recipe with rave reviews!
Greens: I used fresh romaine, but any assortment of baby greens or kale, even iceberg lettuce or butter lettuce will work well.
Fresh Asparagus: Haricots Vert or thin green beans will also work well. If you substitute with traditional green beans, then I suggest cooking in boiling water.
Hearts of Palm: This soft veggie is a pantry staple at my house and I love adding it to salads, but you could also use artichoke hearts or water chestnuts (not soft, but pantry stable and yummy).
Sliced Fresh Veggies: I love the kick and the color of radishes, but I often use Persian cucumbers or thinly sliced celery.
Nicoise olives: Briny olives are must have ingredient in my opinion…but capers are an awesome substitute. If you can find nicoise olives, awesome…otherwise use kalamata or even green olives will work. Just be sure to pit the olives to make it easy for everyone to enjoy this salad. If you don’t like olives, serve them on the side…and let others enjoy the salty goodness that are key to a classic nicoise salad.
Roasted Red Peppers: I keep them stocked in both whole and sliced into strips varieties. They’re perfect for making a last minute romesco dip. If you’re looking for an alternative for a pop of red color, use fresh red peppers or sliced cherry tomatoes.
Nicoise Dressing: You’ll love this easy lemon vinaigrette made with just 4 ingredients.

How to make it

First you’ll heat the oven to 400 to make both the roasted potatoes and the asparagus.

Small red potatoes, with three tiny glass bowls with olive oil, herbs de Provence and dijon mustard.

Dijon mustard and herbes de Provence make these roasted potatoes irresistible.
Wash the potatoes well, you don’t need to peel them, but pat dry.

rimmed baking tray with potatoes cut into halves and quarters, roasted with herbs

Cut potatoes into bite sized pieces.
Place on a rimmed baking sheet.
Then drizzle with olive oil and mustard.
It’s easiest to toss with your hands to make sure they’re evenly coated, but you could use a large pair of tongs.
Then, sprinkle on the herbs and mix again. Arrange in a single layer.
Roast for 25 minutes or until fork tender.

After you get the potatoes into the oven, work on the fresh asparagus.

Fresh asparagus and a small glass dish of olive oil and a little container with fresh black pepper and a small wooden spoon.

Rinse the fresh asparagus under running water and pat dry.
Cut off the woody ends and place them in a single layer onto a separate baking sheet.
Drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil and sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper.

Fresh asparagus spears on a rimmed baking sheet already roasted in the oven.

Roast in the preheated oven for about 8 minutes, depending on thickness.
They will be BRIGHT GREEN when fork tender, but still al dente.

While the potatoes and asparagus are roasting, make the nicoise dressing.

Nicoise Dressing

Ingredients for nicoise salad dressing: olive oil, dijon mustard, lemon and garlic shown with a microplane zester.

You’ll need a small whisk, lemon squeezer and microplane zester to make this classic lemon vinaigrette nicoise dressing.

Lemon Vinaigrette made in a small bowl with a whisk. Also on the cutting board is a lemon squeezer, zester, lemon halves, spent garlic clove and pitcher of oil.

Start by zesting the clove of garlic into a small bowl, then zest the lemon and add the dijon mustard.
Whisk together to form a paste.
Slowly drizzle in the extra virgin olive oil while whisking.
Continue until dressing is fully emulsified.

Ready for some fun? Even if you’re not artistic, you can make an artfully arranged composed salad with these ingredients!

Vegan Nicoise Salad in sections: sliced hearts of palm, herby roasted potatoes, roasted red pepper strips, asparagus, small white beans, olives and radishes on a bed of greens.

Start with a large platter, big enough to hold everything! Place your greens on the bottom and then build your salad one ingredient at a time until the platter is full.

Lemon Vinaigrette being poured over a vegan nicoise salad in colorful sections on a large white platter.

Pour a bit of the dressing over the composed salad and pass the extra dressing around.

Debra’s Pro Tips

Composed nicoise salad with potatoes, hearts of palm, red peppers, asparagus, radish, small white beans and olives.

Make extra herby potatoes: Seriously, expect some shrinkage in the form of hands that pop in and grab a few off the hot tray!
Potatoes: Make sure to cut larger potatoes into similar sizes so they roast evenly.
Use a VARIETY OF VEGETABLES that YOU like best! Swap asparagus for haricot vert, radish for cucumber, any type of briny olives will work…you do you! Make it colorful and let everyone take the parts they enjoy.
Nicoise dressing: Toss a bit of dressing on the potatoes while they’re warm. Same for the asparagus. It will better cling to the hot food and absorb the flavors.

Did you know commenting and rating recipes is one of the best ways to support your favorite food bloggers? If you made this recipe, please consider a five star rating below and leave a comment. Also, please share your photos on instagram by tagging me @dkhealthcoach and using the hashtag #debraklein

Vegan Nicoise Salad with Dijon Dressing

Why you’ll love this recipe

Ingredients and Substitutions

How to make it

Nicoise Dressing

Debra’s Pro Tips

📖 Recipe