Anya Stork

Creative Writing

Russian Recipes

“SALAD OLIVIE”

The Russian Potato Salad

INGREDIENTS:

• Potatoes (4-5 large RUSSET potatoes, OR SIMILAR)

• Carrots (3-4)

• Eggs (a lot! A dozen will do)

• Green peas (16 oz pack of frozen peas or 1-2 cans)

• Pickles (by taste, 4-5 medium size whole pickles)

• Mayonnaise (about 8-10 oz OR slightly more than 1 CUP)

• Hot dogs (1 PACK) OR SKIP IT FOR *VEGETARIAN VERSION*

NOTE: this quantity makes a large potato salad for a party of 5-10 people

Directions:

1. Boil potatoes, carrots and eggs. It is a common practice in Russia to cook them all in one pot. If you choose to do that, add carrots last (a few minutes later) as they cook fast.
Note: Carrots and potatoes should be soft, but not overcooked as they we will need to cut them.

For the traditional Russian “olivie – definitely add hot dogs. you can cook them in the same boiling pot;

2. Cool down the boiled ingredients. I even prefer boiling the potatoes, carrots and eggs the day before and refrigerate them overnight. For the right temperature, the ingredients have to be cool as we will garnish them with mayonnaise;

3. Prepare the green peas. defrost them by simmering (if frozen) or drain the liquid from the can (if you’re using canned peas);

4. Peel potatoes, carrots and eggs;

5. Now it’s time to chop! In a Traditional Russian potato salad everything is finely chopped, in small cubes, about 1 centimeter large (half an inch square). Same is for carrots and eggs. They get chopped in small pieces;

6. Cut the pickles and hot dogs, in similar small pieces.

7. Combine all ingredients in a large salad bowl and add mayonnaise and mix it all. you might want to Add salt to taste, but sometime just having pickles is enough.

Serve immediately or refrigerate.

And there you go! Now you have the absolute essential item for all major Russian holidays and celebrations: salad “Olivie.

Don’t ask me why it has a French name. Just eat it.

Enjoy!

Choice of Potatoes:

For the pictured salad, I used Russet organic potatoes. With as many choices of potatoes as available at American grocery stores, these potatoes seem as close to the Russian traditional potatoes as I could find, but you can use any white or yellow potatoes which are firm and preferably with thicker skin. In the past, I made a mistake of using very soft Golden potatoes… also organic, but unfortunately, they didn’t mix well with mayonnaise. On two different occasions I tried them, and it wasn’t the right taste. They may be too soft and too sweet for this Russian recipe, but they might do better in a different potato salad – – with mustard, perhaps?

There’s a saying that every Russian woman makes Borsch differently.
It is true. Every region has its own twist to this basic recipe.
I was surprised, for example, to find out that my Ukrainian friends even add beans and bell peppers to this soup!

My Mom never did. Part of that was probably scarcity during Soviet times, and we lived up north, in Moscow, which was much different from living in the south parts of Russia, such as in Ukraine (which I explain further in the book).

My Ukrainian grandpa, for instance, liked to add finely chopped pork fat, salo, to his Borsch, along with many fresh garden vegetables which he grew. He chopped everything finely, even potatoes,
in tiny cubes. In Moscow, however, we cut potatoes in big chunks.

So, don’t be afraid to improvise and add your own signature to this famous soup.

The following is the basic Borsch Recipe, the way I cook it, the way my mother had taught me:

There’s a saying that every Russian woman makes Borsch differently.
It is true. Every region has its own twist to this basic recipe.
I was surprised, for example, to find out that my Ukrainian friends even add beans and bell peppers to this soup!

My Mom never did. Part of that was probably scarcity during Soviet times, and we lived up north, in Moscow, which was much different from living in the south parts of Russia, such as in Ukraine (which I explain further in the book).

My Ukrainian grandpa, for instance, liked to add finely chopped pork fat, salo, to his Borsch, along with many fresh garden vegetables which he grew. He chopped everything finely, even potatoes,
in tiny cubes. In Moscow, however, we cut potatoes in big chunks.

So, don’t be afraid to improvise and add your own signature to this famous soup.

The following is the basic Borsch Recipe, the way I cook it, the way my mother had taught me:

1. Boil the beets (with the peel), until they are soft inside

(it takes about 40 minutes, and it’s the longest part
of the preparation, so I like doing it the day before; also, it’s much easier to grate beets when they are either cool or at a room temperature, and cooling takes time!)

2. Boil water in a large pot, for the stock:
(if you are going to use the meet stock, boil the beef bone first), otherwise, you can go to the next step:

3. Peel and cut potatoes; chop them in medium chunks and place in the pot with either cold or hot water, and bring to boil; meanwhile,Peel and cut the onions and carrots; carrots are traditionally grated on a medium size grater, and onions can be chopped as desired;

4. Prepare a large skillet to sauté the onions and carrots;onions will be sautéed first. When onions gain first; when onions gain the golden color, add the carrots and continue sautéing them together;
Mom was mixing them frequently and also adding some water from time to time, not to let it dry up;

5. While onions and carrots are being sautéed,
peel and grate the beets, on a medium size grater, not too finely;
Beets will go into the skillet next, with onions and carrots (beets are always sautéed last, as they are the softest); continue mixing and sautéing the vegetables on a medium heat, for another 10- minutes or so;

6. Taste the water in the pot and add salt as desired; the traditional Russian Borsch has plenty of salt; you can add salt either directly to the pot with the boiling potatoes or to the skillet with vegetables while sauteing them (that’s what my mom did);

7. Beets will be ready in about 10-15 minutes, and you can add all the whole sautéed vegetables from the skillet to the pot with the boiling potatoes;
(don’t hesitate to try a spoonful from the skillet!
These veggies make a delicious side dish on their own)

8. Somewhere in the middle of cooking, mom would add the bay leaves to the pot, for the aroma;
Usually, Borsch will cook for about an hour, on a medium heat. Once you added the sauteed vegetables, you can just sim it, without a lead;

9. Prepare the cabbage. you can cut or shred it; my parents liked shredding the cabbage in thin longer slices, not too finely (not like for cole slaw!)
I like adding the cabbage in bigger chunks; cabbage cooks very fast, so I usually wait until the very end of cooking, to add it, and in about 5 minutes it’s ready;
Mom continued cooking/simming Borsch for at least 20 more minutes after adding the cabbage;

10. Season to taste with salt and black pepper, if you wish; sometime, Mom would put finely chopped garlic, too;

11. This is it! Garnish Borsch with your favorite spices (black pepper and parsley are some of the very traditional choices) and serve it hot.

Note:

The traditional Russian Borsch is served with a piece of black bread
and a spoonful of sour cream

Pri-yat-nogo ape-ti-ta! (Bon appetite!)