Russian Salads for Parties and Everyday

Dedicated to Marc Moreno Maza, a great scientist and even more great cook.

Olivier (Traditional Russian Salad)
Ingredients:    
  • 200 gr. of cooked cow tongue or red beef meet or bologna sausage or non-spicy ham or white chicken meat,    
  • 4 eggs ,    
  • 2 medium carrots,    
  • 3 medium potatoes,    
  • 1 medium apple,    
  • 2 big pickles,    
  • 1/3 of cucumber,    
  • 1/3 of a tin of green peas,    
  • 1/2 of an onion,    
  • 3 table spoons of mayonnaise,    
  • 2 table spoons of sour cream.

    Cooking:
    1. Boil unpeeled potatoes and carrots; hard-boil eggs.
    Let all of the above cool down to the room temperature.
    NB: never put hot or warm potatoes in the salad.
    2. Chop onion.
    3. Peel potatoes and carrots. Cut meat, potatoes, carrots and cucumber into small cubes of even size (with an edge approx. 7 mm).
    Add salt to your taste. Stir.
    4. Peel the apple. Cut it into small cubes of even size (approx. 7x7x7mm). Add to the salad.
    5. Cut pickles into small cubes of even size (approx. 7x7x7mm). Add to the salad.
    6. Peel eggs, Separate a yolk of one egg, put it aside for later decoration.
    Cut the rest of the eggs into small cubes of even size (approx. 7x7x7mm). Add to the salad.
    7. Add green peas.
    8. Mix mayonnaise and sour cream in a separate bowl. Pour over the salad. Stir.
    9. Decorate with sliced yolk, green onions, or parsley.

    Serving:
    NB: It will take some time for mayonnaise and sour cream to penetrate and flavor the salad.
    Give it at least half an hour before serving

    • Crab Salad (New Russian Salad)
    Ingredients:    
  • 1 cup of dry Basmati or similar type of rice,    
  • 4 eggs ,    
  • 250 - 300 gr. of crabmeat or imitation crabmeat,    
  • 1 tin of sweet corn (250 gr.),    
  • (optional) 2-3 table spoons of grated cheddar or old gauda cheese (50-70 gr.) ,    
  • 3-4 table spoons of mayonnaise.

    Cooking:
    1. Boil the rice, so it remains "friable", not sticky. Do not overcook!
    Don't forget to add salt when water starts boiling.
    NB: if you want to speed up rice cooking, put it in the bowl with water for 30-40 min before boiling.
    2. Hard boil the eggs.
    3. Let rice and eggs to cool down to the room temperature.
    4. Cut crabmeat in small cubes, approx. 5x5x5 mm each.
    5. Cut eggs into small cubes, approx. 5x5x5 mm.
    6. Open corn tin, pour out the liquid.
    7. Mix rice, corn, cheese, crabmeat and eggs.
    8. Add mayonnaise at least 30 min before serving, stir.
    9. Put in a big salad bowl, decorate with greens(dill, parsley) and black olives.

    • Beans and bread salad (middle-age Armenian recipe :)
    Ingredients:    
  • 1 cup of dry red kidney beans,    
  • 1/2 - 3/4 of a medium size apple ,    
  • 50 gr. of smoked gruyere or similar smoked cheese,    
  • 10-12 pitted black olives,    
  • 2-3 slices of rye-bread ,    
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic ,    
  • 2-3 table spoons of mayonnaise.

    Cooking:
    1. Boil the beans until it get soft. Do not overcook! Let them cool down to the room temperature.
    NB: instead of boiling beans, you may use canned beans (italian style).
    Make sure you rinse the sauce from the beans and let them dry before adding to the salad.
    2. Cut bread slices in small cubes with the edge approx. 5-7 mm.
    3. Put the bread cubes into a preheated frying pan with 2-3 spoons of olive oil. If you like, you may add salt.
    Fry the bread cubes on medium heat until they get golden crust on all sides. Don't let them dry too much. 4. Peel the apple, cut in small cubes
    5. Cut olives in small rings, approx 4 mm thick.
    6. Grate smoked gauda cheese on mid-size grater.
    7. Mix beans, fried bread, apple, olives, grated cheese.
    8. Chop or grind garlic cloves, add to the salad. 9. Add mayonnaise shortly before serving, stir.
    10. Put in a big salad bowl, decorate with green parsley, pomegranate grains and cucumber slices.

    • Beet salad (Martin's favorite)
    Ingredients:    
  • 3 medium sweet beets,    
  • 1 table spoon of raisins,    
  • 1 table spoon of dried plums,    
  • 2 table spoons of chopped walnuts,    
  • 1 clove of garlic .    
  • 1 table spoon of sour cream,    
  • 1 table spoon of mayonnaise.

    Cooking:
    1. Cook the beets until they got soft inside. While boiling add a bit of salt, a half of small lemon, 2 table spoons of maple syrup or honey. Let beets cool down to the room temperature.
    NB: be patient -- cooking beets takes up to 3 hours.
    To preserve more flavour in beets I usually don't peel them before cooking.
    2. If the raisins are too dry, put them in hot water for 5 minutes, rinse and let dry.
    3. Peel the beats and grate them on a mid-size grater.
    NB: the second half of lemon will help you to get rid of the beet coloring on your hands - just use as it was a soap.
    4. Cut dried plums into small slices.
    5. Mix beets, raisins, plums and walnuts.
    6. Chop or grind garlic cloves, add to the salad.
    7. Add sour cream and mayonnaise, stir.
    8. Put in a big salad bowl, decorate with slices of greens grapes or cucumber slices and sweet corn grains.

    Serving:
    NB: It will take some time for mayonnaise and sour cream to penetrate and flavor the salad.
    Give it at least 20 min before serving

    • Mimosa (Layered Fish Salad)


    		Ingredients:    
  • 1 tin of tuna or pink salmon (200 gr),    
  • 4 eggs ,    
  • 2 medium carrots,    
  • 2 medium potatoes,    
  • 1 medium apple,    
  • salt, pepper,    
  • 2 table spoons of mayonnaise,    
  • 2 table spoons of sour cream.

    NB: this is a layered salad, so you will need a concave dish with large bottom, not a salad bowl.

    Cooking:
    1. Boil the potatoes and carrots; hard-boil eggs.
    Let them to cool down to the room temperature.
    NB: I usually do not peel potatoes before boiling, it helps to save the shape better.
    2. Open fish tin, pour out the liquid.
    Distribute fish meat evenly on the bottom of the dish your prepared for the salad, add pepper and salt to your taste.
    3. Peel the potatoes. Over the fish layer grate potatoes on the mid-size grater. Distribute evenly on top of the previous layer.
    4. Peel the apple. Grate it on the mid-size grater over the potato layer. Distribute evenly so it covers the previous layer.
    5. Grate carrots on the mid-size grater over the potato layer. Distribute evenly so it covers the previous layer.
    6. Mix mayonnaise and sour cream in a separate bowl. Pour over the salad. Do not mix.
    7. Peel the eggs, separate yolks from whites. Grate whites on the mid-size grater over the previous layer.
    8. Grate yolks on the small grater over the white layer.
    9. Decorate with green dill or parsley.

    Serving:
    NB: It will take some time for mayonnaise and sour cream to penetrate and flavor the salad.
    Give it at least 30 min before serving

    • Carrot salad (Vitamin Blast)
    Ingredients:    
  • 4 big carrots,    
  • 2 medium apples,    
  • 2 table spoons pine nuts or choped wallnauts or hazelnuts,    
  • 6 dried apricots,    
  • 3 table spoons of sour cream.

    Cooking:
    1. Grate carrots and apples on a mid-size grater.
    NB: Taste it. If it is not sweet enough, add a teaspoon of sugar
    2. Cut dried apricots into small slices.
    3. Mix carots, aples, nuts and dried apricots. 4. Add sour cream and stir.
    4. Put into a bowl, decorate with olives, cranberries and greens.

    Serving:
    NB: It will take some time for sour cream to penetrate and flavor the salad.
    Give it at least 20 min before serving
    • A proof that it is doable:

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    (c) Elena Smirnova, 2005.