Russian salad is an excellent appetizer made with boiled vegetables dressed with good mayonnaise. It can be served plain or used to dress canapés and vol-au-vents. The base of Russian salad consists of boiled carrots, potatoes, and peas, but personally, I also add a stalk of celery which I think fits really well and makes everything even fresher.
There are different ways to prepare it; often, the vegetables are boiled in three different times. Instead, I try to make uniform pieces slightly larger than the peas and boil everything together in boiling water. The really important thing is to boil the vegetables but not too much, they should remain rather firm; if you make small pieces, 10 minutes in boiling water will be more than enough.
For those who love vegetables that work well as side dishes but can also be served as appetizers, I also suggest
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Cheap
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 6
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 113.54 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 22.17 (g) of which sugars 3.81 (g)
- Proteins 3.86 (g)
- Fat 1.37 (g) of which saturated 0.04 (g)of which unsaturated 0.11 (g)
- Fibers 4.06 (g)
- Sodium 356.18 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 140 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
The ingredients that make up the Russian salad are simply 4 if you decide to buy the mayonnaise, but you will also find the link to make it at home in less than a minute.
- 1 stalk celery
- 4 carrots (medium)
- 3/4 cup frozen peas
- 2 potatoes (medium)
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 4 cups water (for cooking the vegetables)
- to taste coarse salt (for the water)
Tools
To cut the vegetables well, you should use a good kitchen knife with a smooth blade and a cutting board. If you decide to make the mayonnaise at home, you should use a good powerful blender.
- 1 Knife
- 1 Cutting Board
- 1 Blender
Preparation
The longest part of preparing Russian salad is cutting the vegetables, which should be as uniform as possible for quick and even cooking. If you choose to make the mayonnaise at home using the link I provided, it won’t take more than a minute.
Russian salad is great as a side dish but is also pleasantly served among appetizers and aperitifs, accompanied by small croutons, it becomes a truly refined and tasty dish.
Peel and wash the carrots and potatoes and cut them first into strips and then into small cubes. The size should be similar to peas to allow all vegetables to cook at the same time. Clean the celery and also cut it into cubes. Bring water with salt to a boil, and when boiling, add all the vegetables, including peas, and cook the vegetables until they are firm. It will take a maximum of 10 minutes, maybe even less; I recommend tasting them.
When cooked, drain them and place them on a tray to drain and cool well.
Once cooled, you need to add mayonnaise to the vegetables, you can buy it ready-made or you can prepare it in less than a minute using this link.
I dress the salad in a large salad bowl and then transfer it to smaller containers. To serve it best, I decorate it with mayonnaise tufts.
NOTES
Homemade Russian salad keeps well for 3/4 days in the refrigerator, tightly closed in containers with a lid or well sealed with cling film.
You can season your salad with vegan mayonnaise to make this dish suitable for vegans; in any case, it is a perfect second course for vegetarian cuisine.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can raw vegetables be used?
No, the vegetables should be boiled for a few minutes but must be tender to the taste.
Can I use extra virgin olive oil to make mayonnaise?
I do not recommend it because it would make the mayonnaise too heavy. The ideal oil for this preparation is seed oil.
