Ensaladilla Rusa

You will find Russian Salad or Ensaladilla Rusa (in Spanish) in every tapas bar around Spain yet as the name suggests it, this dish was invented in Russia by a chef of French and Belgian descent, Lucien Olivier.

Chef Olivier made French cuisine popular in Russia during the 19th century when the Czar and Russian aristocracy was very fond of the French culture, art, literature and of course cuisine. In 1864, Lucien Olivier opened the legendary restaurant Hermitage in Moscow which became the hottest restaurant in town. Tchaikovsky celebrated his wedding at the Hermitage, Chekhov died at the Hermitage, Dostoyevsky, Gorky had celebrations there too. Chef Olivier created the "Olivier salad" ("Ensaladilla Rusa" in Spanish), a mix of vegetables, eggs and tuna in a rich mayonnaise sauce served cold as a starter. In 1917, the restaurant permanently closed due to the Russian revolution.

Ensaladilla Rusa decorated with grated egg yolk, red peppers and olives

Serving: 2 persons

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 boiled carrot (keep it firm, "al dente")

• 2 to 3 medium size potatoes (keep it firm, "al dente")

• 2 boiled eggs

• 1 roasted red pepper (from a jar or a fresh one baked in the oven or grilled)

• 1 can of tuna in oil or water

• 1 cup of boiled green peas

• Few olives

• Salt

• Black pepper

• 4 table spoons of mayonnaise

Step 1 - Boiling your vegetables and eggs

1. Boil your potatoes (skin on)

2. Boil your carrot (peeled)

3. Boil your green peas

4. Boil your eggs (10 to 11 minutes)

Don't overcook your vegetables, there needs to be a bit of a bite to them. Pass them under cold water to stop the cooking and chill your vegetables.

Step 2 - Dice and mix your ingredients

1. Remove the skin from your boiled potatoes and dice them into small cubes

2. Dice your carrot into small cubes, the same size as your potatoes

3. Save one boiled egg yolk for decoration, chop the rest of your eggs

In a salad bowl, mix:

• Vegetables (potato cubes, carrot cubes and your peas)

• Chopped boiled eggs

• Tuna

• Salt (couple of generous pinches)

• Black pepper (same as salt)

• 3 table spoons of mayonnaise

Your salad is now ready!

Because of the mayonnaise, you must be careful not to keep the salad in the room temperature for too long. You can refrigerate your salad mix for at least 30 minutes before plating and serving it.

Step 3 - Plating your Ensaladilla Rusa

This is like being 4 years old and making sand cakes on the beach.

On a serving plate / dish:

1. Take your salad and mayonnaise mix and build a little mountain on your serving dish

2. With a large spoon, shape the salad to the shape you want

3. Cover the salad with a small layer of mayonnaise

4. With a cheese grater, grate the boiled egg yolk on top of the salad

5. Place a few green olives and a few thin slices of your red pepper over the grated egg yolk

It is very nice to eat this salad with something crunchy such as toasted or fried bread. Spaniards would traditionally eat Ensaladilla Rusa with dry short bread sticks called "picos".

Tapa of Ensaladilla Rusa

Enjoy, bon appétit!