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salad olivier Russian potato salad recipe
Photo credit Sonya Sanford

Russian Potato Salad (Salad Olivier)

This festive Russian salad is made with humble, but thoughtful, ingredients. This is how my family like it, but feel free to adapt it to your taste.

  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: Serves 6-8 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale

For the salad:

  • 1.5 lb Yukon Gold potatoes, about 45 medium
  • 3 large carrots
  • 4 large eggs
  • 3 large dill pickles, or to taste (use naturally fermented/brined pickles)
  • 1 cup frozen peas, thawed (you can substitute with fresh cooked peas or canned)

For the dressing:

  • 1 cup high-quality mayonnaise
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • juice of ½ a lemon, or to taste
  • 1 Tbsp pickle liquid (optional)
  • ¾ Tbsp kosher salt, or to taste
  • 2 Tbsp chopped fresh dill (optional)

Instructions

  1. Wash the potatoes and carrots well. Add them to a pot, and fill with water. Bring the water to a boil, and boil the potatoes and carrots until easily pierced through with a knife. The carrots will cook faster, about 15-20 minutes. Once they’re tender remove them from the pot and allow the potatoes to finish cooking, about 15-20 minutes more, or 30-35 minutes in total. Be careful not to overcook your potatoes and carrots, you do not want them to end up as mush in the salad. Once cooked, set aside to cool or refrigerate. (This step can be done up to two days in advance.)
  2. While the potatoes and carrots are cooking, hard boil your eggs and allow them to cool. Once the potatoes and eggs are cooled, carefully remove their peels. You can either remove or keep the peel on your carrots depending on your preference.
  3. Cube all of the potatoes, carrots and eggs to the same size. I like a medium-small dice.
  4. Dice the pickles slightly smaller than the other ingredients, as they have a stronger flavor.
  5. Add the cubed potatoes, carrots and eggs to a large bowl. Add the pickles and thawed peas to the bowl.
  6. In a separate small bowl, combine all of the ingredients for the dressing and whisk together. Taste and adjust accordingly.
  7. Add the dressing to the potato mixture and carefully stir until everything is fully coated. Taste and add more salt if desired (every brand of kosher salt differs in salinity). If you want the salad creamier/tangier, add more mayonnaise or lemon juice. You can also use sour cream or yogurt if desired.
  8. Allow the salad to chill for at least 1 hour before serving, so that the flavors can all come together.
  9. Before serving, transfer the salad to a serving bowl. This salad is known for being creatively decorated and festively garnished with fresh herbs, vegetable roses, etc. You can doll it up in any way you like.

Notes

  • You can cook the potatoes and carrots up to two days in advance, and store in the refrigerator.
  • This salad need to sit for 1 hour before serving, and can be made up to a day in advance.
  • This salad stores well for two days. You can also make this without the dressing up to three days in advance, then add the dressing before serving.
  • Author: Sonya Sanford
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 40 minutes
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Method: Quick
  • Cuisine: Holiday