Russian Salad (OLIVIER SALAD)

You can serve this Vegan Russian Salad (OLIVIER SALAD) with your Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, as a side dish or as a refreshing meal during the holiday season.

There are many regional variations of this salad over the centuries, but there are a few ingredients that are commonly found in all of them: potatoes, carrots, pickles, onions, peas, and vegan mayonnaise-based dressing. The original version has eggs and plain mayonnaise which we are skipping here.

Those who like vegan & vegetarian recipes can join my Facebook group World Best Vegetarian & Vegan Recipes.

Some other recipes you would like on my blog – Hara Bhara Stuffed Kabab | Hara Bhara Kabab, Baked Potato Slices – sliced baked potatoes, Mexican corn salad – Roasted corn salad Mexican, EASY EGGPLANT RED PEPPER DIP (AJVAR).

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About Russian Salad (OLIVIER SALAD) Recipe

The original creation of the Russian Salad (OLIVIER SALAD) dates back to the 1860s when Lucien Olivier was working at a Moscow restaurant called Hermitage. The dish is now available in all restaurants across Russia because it has become so popular.

Tradition dictates that it should be served on any holiday, gathering, birthday party, etc. Its variations are found in almost every country in Eastern Europe, from Ukrainian, Bulgarian, to Polish and Hungarian.

Years ago, at our cooking school, we made Russian salad and I loved it. My first bite made me fall in love. Russian Potato Salad descended from a complete meal with meat (like ham) and potatoes (like potato salad). Veganizing it was a no-brainer! I don’t even notice a difference between them, and this version is much better.

In my experience, I have never had one with meat, and I prefer it vegetarian way. If you’re inclined, you may include it in your ingredients list.

It was at this beach restaurant in Goa, located along India’s southwest coast, that I discovered this beautiful salad a second time later in life. Many Russian tourists visit Goa during Indian winters, which makes it an attractive tourist destination for western tourists. The region is also popular for its authentic Russian cuisine.

Russian salad is a versatile and easy-to-modify recipe adapted from a recipe I developed at my cooking school. However, I’ve made just a few tweaks to this recipe to make it eggless and vegan: I omit the chopped eggs and use an eggless mayo.

You can serve this delicious snack as a side dish to your favorite Eastern European main dishes. It is even possible to prepare Russian salad ahead of time and keep it in the refrigerator so you have it whenever you want it.

Russian potato salad is believed to have originated with meat cubes (like ham) and to have been a complete meal. It is my personal preference to never have one with meat. If you wish, you may include it on your ingredients list.

Ingredients

• 1 cup – Potato (diced)
• 1 cup – Apple (diced)
• 1/2 cup – Yellow bell pepper (diced)
• 1/2 cup – Red bell pepper (diced)
• 1/2 cup – Carrot (diced)
• 1 cup – Pomegranate
• 1/2 cup – Frozen corns
• 1/2 cup – Onion (chopped)
• 1/2 cup – Frozen peas
• 1/2 cup – French beans (diced)
• 3 – Garlic cloves (minced)
• 1 tbsp – Vegan grainy mustard
• 1 tsp – Black pepper powder
• 1 tbsp – Black olive (diced)
• 1 tbsp- Green olive (diced)
• 1 tbsp – French white wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp – Vegan fresh cream
• 4 tbsp – Vegan Mayonnaise
• Salt to taste

Vegetables – I have used diced potatoes, bell peppers, carrots, frozen corns, onions, frozen peas, french beans, garlic cloves, black olives, and green olives. You can use whatever you prefer.

Fruits – I have used Apple and pomegranate. You can omit apples as they oxidize very fast but if you will consume them after making you can add them.

Fresh cream & mayonnaise – I have used vegan fresh cream and Mayonnaise for veganizing it. If you are vegetarian use plain ones.

French White Wine Vinegar – Gives a flavourful aroma and taste to this delicious salad.

Seasoning – I have only used black pepper powder and salt to taste.

Check out the Russian Salad (OLIVIER SALAD) Recipe Video:

How To Make Russian Salad (OLIVIER SALAD) recipe Step By Step With Photo:

1. In a pan, boil water, add potatoes, french beans, carrots, peas, and corns. Parboil all these veggies for 2 minutes.
2. After 2 minutes take out veggies after parboiling.
3. In a frying pan, add olive oil, add garlic minced for 1 minute. Take it out keep it aside.
4. In a bowl, add all the parboil veggies, add onion chopped, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, pomegranate, black olive, green olive, apple diced, fried garlic minced, vegan mayonnaise, vegan fresh cream, french white vinegar, grainy mustard, black pepper powder, and salt according to taste.
5. Mix everything together nicely.
6. Decorate with some pomegranates. Russian salad is ready to be served.

   

Important Suggestion To Keep In Mind

• You should not add salt to your vegan mayonnaise mixture. Mayonnaise contains a lot of salt. Toss the salad first, taste it, and then add salt as needed. The rule of thumb is that you can always add salt, but you cannot take it away!
• You can take plain mayonnaise or vegan mayonnaise as per your preference.
• You can also add Dijon mustard if you like.
• If you are a vegetarian then you can take eggless mayonnaise.
• You can use plain fresh cream or vegan cream as per your preference.
• Vegetables can either be steamed or boiled depending on your preference. Steaming or boiling the veggie’s whole helps retain the vitamins and minerals that are water-soluble.

Different Ways Of Cooking Vegetables For Russian Salad:

When cooking in a pan: Vegetables should be peeled and chopped. Pour almost enough water to cover them over a pot or pan. Put a lid on the pot and simmer on medium-low heat until the vegetables are fork-tender.

Instant Pot cooking instructions: Using a 6 quart IP, add 1.5 cups to 2 cups of water in the steel insert. Fill with water and place a trivet inside. Serve peeled and chopped vegetables in a pan on the trivet. Place the valve into the sealing position. Fork-tender veggies require 10 to 15 minutes of high-pressure cooking. Let the pressure release naturally after five minutes.

In a pressure cooker, cook as follows: Alternatively, you can steam the vegetables in a pot inside the cooker. The vegetables I use in my stovetop pressure cooker are whole and boiled. Make sure there is enough water to cover the vegetables.

Under medium to medium-high heat, cook 2 to 3 times under pressure. If the potatoes are too large, halve or quarter them. Only open the lid when the pressure in the pressure cooker drops naturally.

It doesn’t matter what method you choose. Drain all the water from the vegetables when they’re cooked and fork-tender.

Let them warm up. Then peel and chop the carrots and potatoes into cubes. Meanwhile, chop the french beans. Place these prepared and chopped vegetables in a bowl.

Make sure you have all the ingredients measured out for the Russian salad so you can mix them all together.

Storage Suggestion

Russian salad can be enjoyed immediately while slightly warm or at room temperature, or it can be refrigerated for cold serving.

I have used cashew mayo in this recipe so that it keeps well in the fridge for 1 day. The recipe is best eaten on the same day.

Serving Suggestion

Salads like this pair well with traditional Russian and Eastern European recipes, including Russian vegetable soup and tomato soup.

You can serve it with any picnic or casual food, like grilled veg sandwiches or cucumber sandwiches, as well as with potato salad-like dishes. It can also be eaten by itself!

Variations Of Russian Potato Salad

Across Eastern Europe, the popular Olivier Salad became a staple. The traditional salad in Ukraine and Bulgaria contains almost always meat (e.g. ham and bologna).

While in Poland no meat is added to “Salatka Jarzynowa”, they call this salad, there are often other root vegetables added, such as parsnip and celery root, or even a chopped apple. In my opinion, I don’t like the taste of cooked parsnips or celery root, so they do not belong to my Olivier Salad. I personally also don’t like the fact that an apple can turn brown and make a salad less appealing but here to show you guys I have added apples.

In my Vegan Olivier Salad, my favorite addition is sweet canned corn. This corn tastes wonderful and it goes so well with this salad.

Experiment with other ingredients to customize the dish to your liking. Feel free to let me know your thoughts on this variation if you share the tradition of making this great Russian salad. Have fun!

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this Russian salad recipe work with tofu?

It is possible. Plant-based protein will be added to the salad. Salads should be prepared with pan-fried or sautéed tofu.

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