RECIPE PASSALADIÈRE NIÇOISE TRADITION | Very Gourmand
The recipe for Pissaladière Niçoise is one of the great salty specialties of the South, at the crossroads of Mediterranean cuisine and the heritage of Nice. This pieces with candied onions, anchovy and olives, placed on a fluffy bread dough, concentrates all that we love Provence and the Côte d'Azur. By preparing it at home, you find the taste of the Nice markets, even at the other end of the world. We do not care about a traditional dasaladière, while explaining its modern history and variants.
Pissaladière Niçoise Recipe: Onion and South Anchovies pie
Reading time: ~ 12 min
- Table of contents
- What is an authentic Passaladière Niçoise?
- Ingredients for a traditional Nice Passaladière recipe
- Prepare the pulp of Pissaladière
- Confirm onions and assemble the pie
- Tips, variants and agreements for the Pissaladière
- FAQ
- In summary
What is an authentic Passaladière Niçoise?

A nice bakery pie
Passaladière Niçoise is above all a bakery pie. Unlike a classic onion pie, it is preparing on a bread paste, close to that of a focus. This soft base supports a generous layer of onions long candied in olive oil, perfumed of herbs, sometimes garlic, then garnished with anchovies and black olives.
- A lifting paste with flour, baker's yeast, lukewarm water, olive oil and salt
- A long cooking of the onions on fire very soft until getting a melting texture, almost compoted
- Anchovies (or originally a condiment named Pissalat based on anchovy)
- Black olives, ideally Nice olives, for a marked local signature
So we are closer to a bakery specialty than a pizza or a quiche. This gives the passage of its unique identity and its incredible softness under the filling.
The Mediterranean origins of this specialty
The Pissaladière probably finds its origin in the genoise cuisine of the end of the Middle Ages, before being adopted and transformed to Nice. Long, we used Pissalat, a preparation of fermented anchovies, which was mixed with onions. Today, this condiment is often replaced by anchovy dough or nets arranged.
For you, customers often outside France, the Pissaladière embodies a simple way to invite the Mediterranean to table. Olive oil, anchovies, onions, black olives and aromatic herbs tell the south and its generous and fragrant cuisine.
Ingredients for a traditional Nice Passaladière recipe
For a large plate (4 to 6 people.)
For bread dough
300 g of wheat flour, 10 g of fresh baker yeast (or dry equivalent), 15 cl of lukewarm water, 4 c. to s. olive oil, 1 tbsp. at c. salt shave.
For the onion, anchovy and olives
800 g to 1 kg of yellow onions, 6 to 8 c. to s. olive oil, 1 garlic clove (optional), a bouquet garni (thyme, laurel) or dry thyme, 1 small jar of anchovy nets in oil, a handful of black olives (ideally from Nice), mill pepper. You can embed a spoon of anchovy paste into the onion compote to get closer to the spirit of the historical pass.
Role of the main ingredients
Prepare the pulp of Pissaladière
1. Diaise yeast in lukewarm water: Water must be warm and non-burning. Wait for the formation of small bubbles.
2. Mix the dry ingredients: pour the flour into a salad bowl and place the salt on the side so that it does not come into direct contact with the yeast.
3. Form the dough: dig a well, add water-yeast and olive oil, then mix until a dough stands.
4. Knead 10 min up to a smooth and elastic texture.
5. Let rise up to about 1 hour in a lukewarm place, the dough must double volume.
Confirm onions and assemble the pie
Confirm onions
1. Peel and finely mince onions.

2. Heat the olive oil over low medium heat, add onions, garlic and bouquet garnished.
3. Reduce the fire to a minimum and cook 40 to 90 min, stirring regularly.
4. Remove the bouquet garnished, pepper and, if desired, incorporate a little anchovy dough.
Assembly and cooking
1. Degasize the dough and spread it on a slightly oiled plate, thickness ≈ 1 cm.
2. Spread the onion compote uniformly.
3. Arrange the anchovy nets in crushes and place a black olive in the center of each diamond.
4. Bake 20 to 30 minutes to 200-220 ° C: golden dough below and edges, slightly colored onions.
5. At the exit of the oven, add a net of olive oil and let stand for a few minutes before cutting.
Tips, variants and agreements for the Pissaladière
To save time, a trading pizza paste can troubleshoot, but the result will be less typical. Some modern versions use a broken paste; We then obtain a pie onion rather than a real pissaladière.
You can reinforce the Provencal key with a little dry oregano. If your guests fear the anchovy salt, mix a small amount of anchovy paste with onions and reduce the threads on the surface. For the aperitif, cut out squared pie, the crushes of anchovies and the olives naturally indicate the shares.
Beverage side, prefer a dry white or a dew de Provence. Without alcohol, unsweetened frozen tea with citrus fruits or thyme accompanies the softness of onions and the salinity of anchovies.
FAQ
Can we prepare pissaladière in advance?
Yes I do. Prepare dough and onions the day before and keep them separately at the expense, then assemble and cook the same day. You can also cook the pie a few hours before the service and warm it briefly to lighten it.
What difference between Pissaladière and Pizza?
Passaladière rests on a single dominant filling: the onion compote, accompanied by anchovies and olives. There is neither tomato sauce nor cheese. Its dough looks more like a fougasse than a fine and crisp pizza paste.
How to adapt the dassaladière if we do not like anchovies?
Anchovies are part of his identity, but you can reduce them and integrate them into the onions for a more discreet taste, realize a half plate without anchovy or propose a focus with tomatoes as an alternative.

In summary
With its fluffy bread pulp, its onions candied with olive oil, its anchovies and its black olives, the Pissaladière Niçoise is an ideal entrance door towards the Provencal kitchen. Respect the raised dough, the soft cooking of onions and the salt balance of anchovies: you will succeed this specialty wherever you are. To discover other Mediterranean products and find those that match your desires, explore the solutions offered on Very Gourmand.