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Olivier salad (vegetarian)
Salat Olivier: diced potato, carrot, egg, peas and pickles in mayonnaise, the New Year's Eve salad
Salat Olivier was born in a fashionable Moscow restaurant in the 1860s, but today it belongs to every Russian kitchen on 31 December, when a bowl the size of a washing-up basin is made in the afternoon and eaten until 1 January is well over. Soviet cooks swapped the original's game for boiled sausage; this vegetarian version leaves it out and lets the sweet carrots, peas, sharp pickled cucumbers and creamy egg carry the salad. Chef's tip: cut everything to the size of a pea, the same size as the peas themselves; that is what makes Olivier feel like Olivier rather than potato salad.
- Total time
- 55 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the salad
For the dressing
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Boil 1 ⅛ lb waxy potatoes and 2 carrots in their skins in salted water over a medium heat for 20–25 minutes until a knife slides in easily. Drain and cool completely; warm vegetables turn the mayonnaise oily.
25 minStep 2: Meanwhile boil 4 eggs for 10 minutes, then cool in cold water and peel.
10 minStep 3: If using frozen 7 oz frozen or tinned peas, pour boiling water over them, leave 2 minutes and drain well.
2 minStep 4: Peel the potatoes and carrots. Dice them, the eggs, 4 brined or pickled cucumbers and ½ fresh cucumber into neat 7–8 mm cubes and put them in a large bowl with the peas and 4 spring onions. Pat the pickles dry first, or the salad turns watery.
Step 5: Mix 7 oz mayonnaise, 2 tbsp soured cream (smetana) and 1 tsp mild mustard and fold through just enough to coat everything without drowning it. Season with ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper.
Step 6: Chill for at least 1 hour so the flavours settle. Scatter with ⅓ oz fresh dill to serve; it keeps 2 days in the fridge.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 360 kcal
- Protein
- 9 g
- Carbs
- 22 g
- Fat
- 26 g
- Fibre
- 5 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does olivier salad (vegetarian) take?
- About 55 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of waxy potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
- What can I use instead of carrots?
- Parsnip or sweet potato, same weight.
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