Authentic Russian Salad 'Olivye' Recipe

I'm an American living in Moscow, and this is THE recipe for inviting a Russian in for the New Year's holidays. (the first week of January) I usually see it with dill instead of parsley. One can use sour cream instead of mayo, or in combination, although my Russian friends all state emphatically that one must use... well, some say sour cream, others say mayo, others say a combination. I usually add a bit of raw onion, chopped, and substitute a fresh cuc for one of the pickles, but all that's optional.

I have made this recipe, in a modified version, for years. It is easy to make special. Use frozen peas and don't cook them, just defrost. Switch the mayo for sour cream and a tbsp of pickle juice. Swap out the ham for cooked salmon and shrimp. I like a little parsley or cilantro. I bit of onion and the same amount of chopped apple. I leave the skin on everything. It is my most requested dish. I first heard of it when a friend was flying to the US first class. He was served the modified version I noted above and called me. He described the dish he was eating. I reverse engineered it. He sent me a picture and we talked about it for an hour while I determined how the chef accomplished each aspect. I tested it with a few variations before coming up with the combination above. As soon as it turns warm we start thinking about Olivier potato salad.

Turned out perfectly! Brought to book club for Russian themed night, and was asked for the recipe — everyone loved it. I used Yukon gold potatoes boiled for about 20 min., used frozen green peas (thawed), and half-mayonnaise half-sour cream for dressing. I used chopped fresh dill and seasoned with salt and pepper. I also chopped a shallot for a little more flavor. Family loved it, too.

Very nice, great flavours, but I added chopped onion, and sprinkled fried chorizo crumb on top as I didn’t have ham. Also put one clove of minced fresh garlic, salt and cracked black pepper. Used mayonnaise with a couple of spoons of un-whipped fresh cream. I left the dill out as I’m not fond of it. It was delicious!

Really tasty recipe. Interestingly my husband used to eat this and called it Russian salad while growing up in Pakistan (minus the ham). I guess the Russian people introduced Pakistanis to it as well as the rest of the world!

Very good recipe. A few changes are in order. 1 lb of cubed Polish Ham is the way to go. I added 1 chopped shallot but will use 2 next time. Mayo, I used about 4-5 heaping tablespoons and thinned this out with maybe 1/4 cup or so of Half & Half. Frozen peas definitely and not canned. Either go with 3-4 carrots or don't use any at all. I will absolutely make this again.

Years ago, a Turkish friend introduced me to Russian salad. She used 1/2 mayo and 1/2 yogurt. This recipe is delicious many different ways!

Tried this at a Russian eatery and loved it. I have made this three times now. I just add an extra egg and double ham for my family but that is it. So good!

My husband loves this salad. I used frozen peas instead of canned and 1 teaspoon dried dill instead of parsley, since it was on hand. Six pickles seemed like a lot when I was chopping them, but the taste blended right in.

Tried to follow this recipe but only had certain ingredients in the cupboard. Swapped out ham for continental smoked hot dogs (herta), the dill for fresh thyme flowers and left out the peas as didn't have any. One very fussy young boy and young girl ate the whole lot. Nina recipe that Woods alongside fries and salad from the garden which we need to start using now. Super delicious definitely gonna make this again.

Very good,tasty would make again. I used half Mayo and half on sour cream,very good.

I made it exactly as written and is simply fantastic! Easy to make and even better the next day! Thank you for a summertime favorite!

Made this and loved it, i made some tweaks to make it tastier and tangier. I added chilli flakee, spring onions (green part), some powder mustard, oregano and white pepper along with salt. I replaced ham with cooked and cooled sausage (as im pregnant and cant eat ham), and replaced pickles and peas (hate peas) with capers. Only used sour cream and it came out BRILLIANTLY! Thanks for sharing!

I can’t vouch for authenticity, but not my favorite potato salad I’ve tried. Not bad either, fine but not awesome.

yes very useful

My husband is from Portugal and taught me to make this with potatoes, chickpeas, eggs, green olives and cod. I was not a fan of the chickpeas, so we now swap them out for french green beans. Cod is expensive so, I use tuna. I also sub black olives for green. For the dressing we use 2/3 mayo mixed with 1/3 "Cabots" Greek Yogurt. (BEST Greek yogurt) and jar of pimento's. We use can or jars for all. No cooking except the boiled eggs. We use "Cavenders" Greek seasoning and dill. A quick and easy dinner we often eat during summer.

I taste this recipe on your guidance it's really fantastic and superb.

Honestly, this slapped.

If you are expecting a typical egg salad, this is not quite that. While none of the flavors are offensive, there is a bit of a strange aftertaste present from the addition of the pickles and canned peas. I don't think I would try this again. It was a bit too strange for me. It's like when you drink orange juice expecting milk or vice versa. I like both those drinks, but the shock of it is often unpleasant.

I didn’t expect to like it as well as I did. It was quite good. Will definitively make it again.