One of the most popular recipes in the world is salad russian, but it also stands out for the different doubts about its origin. Its consumption has been going on for a long time, becoming one of the traditional tapas in summer, both for its ease and for its flavor.
This combination of mayonnaise, pieces of boiled potato, tuna in jam with different vegetables is characterized by having many versions. Although over time it has become famous as a Russian salad, its history and origin are worth detailing.
History and origin of the Russian salad
As its name says, it has its origin mainly in Russia. However, it is based on French cuisine. At first, it was defined as Olivier salad, becoming famous throughout the European country. This name comes from its creator, Lucien Olivier, who was a Belgian chef of French origin who was recognized throughout Russia thanks to this particular salad.
Indeed, Lucien arrived in Russia as an emigrant with the idea of having a better life than the one he had in his country of origin. To do this, he would use his culinary skills by opening a fine dining restaurant. This is how Hermitage was born, a gastronomic space where the main dish of food would be this salad.
At the Hermitage, Olivier dazzled with a culinary offer based on French gastronomy. However, the one that stood out the most among the rest was the “olivye salat”. For this recipe, the chef used interesting ingredients such as partridge meat, beef tongue, crab meat (Chatka in Russia), caviar, lettuce, pickles, boiled potatoes and olives. To all this he added a type of mayonnaise that had a magical and secret touch that was never discovered. In this way, the Olivier salad began to delight palates in the Russian upper class until the First World War.
At this point, when the Soviet Union was formed, the original recipe began to undergo modifications, to the point of disappearing entirely. That is, it began to prepare with more accessible ingredients such as chicken, cooked ham, carrots, and peas. However, the cooked potato and mayonnaise mixture was maintained as a base.
It is believed that it was the Russian refugees who, on leaving the country, carried this recipe with them in their hearts. Thanks to that, they were able to adapt it to the different cultures to which they came, with which the Olivier salad was able to conquer more palates.
Who invented the Russian salad?
After the Belgian chef passed away in 1883, many cooks tried to emulate and make their own versions of the popular salad recipe. However, neither could adopt the tradition of the original.
Thanks to the fame it acquired, the Olivier salad became known as the Russian salad, especially outside of Russia. However, is the legend true? Is Lucier really the only creator of the famous salad?
About, investigations and records published by the gastronomic journalist Ana Vega shed light on the true origin of the Russian salad. This means that she is not as Russian as she seems.
According to the journalist’s publications, Russian salad was already being prepared long before Lucier Olivier began his career as a chef. Given this, Ana Vega says that “at the beginning of the 19th century there already existed in the Austro-Hungarian empire something called Russischer Salat (Russian salad in German) which had no resemblance to salad other than many different ingredients.
In October 1844, during an official banquet, Queen Victoria of England and her guests tasted a Russian salad that was probably the closest to the one known today. Salads defined as Italian or French already existed and the only difference that existed between the Italian and the Russian was that the latter was made with herring and its ingredients cut into a dice.
Even so, the work of Lucier Olivier on the plates of his luxurious Hermitage was not in vain for the history of Russian salad. Indeed, she took it upon herself to create her own version of a recipe that already existed, but which It is not a mistake to admit that it was thanks to him and his Olivier salad that this dish became popular.. She was able to catch the attention of other professional chefs and students, gaining fame both in Russia and in the rest of Europe and the world.
Russian salad today
Today, the Dictionary of the Royal Academy of Language has the concept of “Russian salad”, defining it as: “salad of potato, peas, carrot and boiled egg, mixed with tuna or other ingredients, served cold and dressed with mayonnaise”.
There is no doubt that this recipe has not stopped transforming over the years, where each culture incorporates new ingredients to make it more memorable.