My Olivier Russian potato salad is made with a combination of potato and sweet potato, green peas, carrots, pickles and spring onion. Tossed with olive oil, vinegar and mayo gives the dish that classic look. And to finish, a medium-boiled egg as topping. Wonderful either as a meal on its own or as a side dish.
Here we go! The kick-off for the football World Cup 2018 is today and with that comes the first recipe of this FOODball journey. Since it takes place in Russia, I am going to show you one of the most known Russian recipes. No, it’s neither Vodka nor the blinis (I will make them some other time). It’s Olivier Russian potato salad.
I’ve read it’s typical for Russians to serve it for Christmas. But why only then? I find it so delicious and easy, perfect for a summer day at a grilling party and gathering with friends on a football evening.
Before I start with the recipe, let me tell you a fun fact about the Olivier Russian potato salad origins. Probably you might think it is a Russian invention. The answer is no. It was created by a Belgian chef called Olivier, who was working at Hermitage in Moscow. Since he invented it (more than 150 years ago), many variations were created. The Russian potato salad is known almost everywhere in the world, but mostly in the countries surrounding Russia and in the Balkans.
If you are a fan of salads like this one, then check these delicious salad recipes: quinoa avocado salad, crunchy apple-carrot salad, sweet potato leek salad or these gorgeous Hasselback potatoes.
When I was a little girl, my mom used to make it quite often. Most of the times she made it for picnics or birthday parties. But she called it French salad and people in Slovenia call it like that even today. A little confusing, isn’t it? Anyway, if you would ask me, is neither Russian nor French but Belgian. Hehehe.
Also, I combined a sweet potato with normal potato. Yeah, I wanted to make a change. As always. And it worked great. Just as the classic potato also sweet potato pairs great with salads, too. I also didn’t exaggerate with mayo. I am making salad with mayo and not mayo with salad, after all. Wink. However, you do it your way.
This potato salad serves four portions (in a medium bowl) or eight (in a small bowl) and it’s perfect either as a side dish or as a main. It’s really easy to prepare and you can store it in the fridge for a couple of days. As I said before, it’s perfect for picnics and grilling.
Ingredients for 4-8 portions of Olivier Russian potato salad:
- 300 g potatoes
- 200 g sweet potato
- 3 carrots (big)
- 150 g green peas (cooked or raw)
- 6 pickles (medium to big)
- 2 spring onions
- 4 boiled eggs
- 150 g mayonnaise
- 2 Tbsp of mango-chili vinegar
- salt, pepper
First of all, wash the potatoes and carrots (you can peel them before or after cooking them) and cut them into same-sized cubes. Next, put them to cook for about 15 minutes.
In the meantime, wash, clean and chop the spring onions. Cut also the pickles. Combine everything (onions and pickles) in a large salad bowl. Furthermore, put the eggs to boil. For the hard-boiled eggs, cook them about 6-7 minutes long and for the medium for about 5 minutes.
After the potatoes and carrots are cooked (but not overcooked), drain them and allow them to cool for 10 minutes. Then, add them to the pickles and onion in the salad bowl, followed by the green peas as well.
Last but not least, peel the eggs and cut them into the same size pieces as potatoes. At the end season well with salt and pepper, add the mayonnaise and the delicious vinegar. Give it a gentle stir and you are ready to serve.
Enjoy the Olivier Russian potato salad on the World Cup opening evening, for a picnic or for a grilling party. You might serve it together with different kinds of meat (sausages, steaks, chicken wings, skewers) or enjoy it just like that.
Prijatnogo appetita! Приятного аппетита!
P.S.: You can also check the recipe representing Italy. Even though they are not playing this year, I still wanted to mention them and the “Squadra Azzurra”.
