Pissaladiere (French Onion and Anchovy Tart)

About This Recipe

Pissaladiere is a specialty of Nice in southern France, a savory tart built on a bed of onions caramelized for well over an hour until they turn deeply sweet and jammy, topped with a lattice of anchovy fillets and scattered black nicoise olives. Unlike pizza, which it's often compared to, pissaladiere traditionally uses a simple bread-like dough rather than a thin pizza crust, and its flavor comes almost entirely from the long-cooked onions rather than tomato sauce or cheese. The technique that defines pissaladiere is the onion cooking time: onions are sliced thin and cooked low and slow in olive oil for at least an hour, stirred occasionally, until they collapse into a deeply sweet, almost marmalade-like mass -- rushing this step with high heat results in browned, bitter onions rather than the mellow sweetness the dish depends on. The dough is rolled thin, and the anchovies are arranged in a decorative crosshatch pattern with an olive nestled in each diamond, a presentation as traditional as the flavor itself. Served at room temperature, cut into squares, pissaladiere is Provencal market and cafe food -- salty, sweet, and deeply savory, meant to be eaten in small pieces alongside a glass of rose.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 2.5 cupsall-purpose flour
• 1 tspsalt
• 2.25 tspinstant yeast
• 0.33 cupolive oil(plus extra for onions)
• 0.75 cupwarm water
• 1.2 kgonions(thinly sliced (about 6 large))
• 2bay leaves
• 2 sprigsfresh thyme
• 1 tspsalt(for onions)
• 16anchovy fillets
• 0.5 cupnicoise or kalamata olives(pitted)

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the dough

   Mix flour, salt, and yeast. Add olive oil and warm water, mixing until a smooth dough forms. Knead 8 minutes, then rest covered 1 hour until doubled.

2. 2

   Cook the onions

   Heat a generous amount of olive oil in a wide pan over low heat. Add onions, bay leaves, thyme, and salt.

3. 3

   Cook slowly

   Cook onions over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 60-70 minutes until deeply softened, sweet, and jammy, adding a splash of water if they start to dry out or brown too much.

4. 4

   Roll the dough

   Preheat oven to 220C/425F. Roll dough thin and fit into a rectangular baking sheet or tart pan.

5. 5

   Assemble

   Remove bay leaves and thyme stems from onions. Spread cooked onions evenly over the dough.

6. 6

   Add anchovies and olives

   Arrange anchovy fillets in a crosshatch pattern over the onions, placing an olive in the center of each diamond.

7. 7

   Bake

   Bake 20-25 minutes until the crust is golden and cooked through.

8. 8

   Serve

   Let cool slightly, cut into squares, and serve warm or at room temperature.

Variations

• •

  Skip the anchovies for a milder, onion-only version if you're serving guests who dislike them.

• •

  Use a thin pizza-style dough instead of the traditional bread dough for a crisper base.

• •

  Add a few slices of tomato under the onions for a slightly different, more colorful presentation.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 3 days in an airtight container. Best served at room temperature; reheating in a 180C/350F oven for 10 minutes can restore some crispness if desired.

Frequently Asked Questions