When New Year is coming but I am not in the mood of celebration, I am turning on my favorite Russian holiday movie and cooking Olivier salad. The salad which we believe has a French origin, while all-world calls this the Russian salad.
I’d say, there is not a single Russian family who on December 31 does not make this salad. I certainly treat this as our national tradition, which I am excited to introduce to my husband.
For a long time, I have not been using the traditional Olivier salad recipe, preferring its lighter version. I make this salad vegetarian, in other words, I do not add chicken or other meat to it. I replace the pickled cucumber and canned peas with fresh ingredients. It tastes fantastic!
As far as the dressing, these days it is not so difficult to find mayonnaise with good ingredients, such as organic cage-free eggs, olive oil or avocado oil. Best choice when there is no soy in mayonnaise. You can also choose to make it yourself. See recipe below. For the pickiest people, who can not tolerate mayonnaise at all, I prepare a vegan version made from avocado. It turns out quite tasty, although it does not look like regular mayonnaise.
While it is the holiday season, it is important to understand that eating a portion of your favorite salad will not entail any terrible consequences. The main things are good company and a positive attitude, then even the less healthy food will do good. It is vitally important to be able to enjoy communication with family and friends rather than resorting to food as the main source of joy.
New Year Olivier salad
Ingredients
- 2 medium potatoes
- 2 large carrots
- 2 eggs
- 150 g fresh green peas
- 1 large cucumber
- 1/4 cup fresh green peas
- 1 green onion
- 1/2 bunch of dill optional
- 120 g of mayonnaise homemade or vegan
- salt ground black pepper
- 150 g. Chicken optional
Instructions
- Potatoes and carrots boil in salted water until cooked.
- Eggs boil separately. Peel and cut into small cubes. If you add chicken, cut it to the same size cubes.
- Cut the cucumber. Defrost the fresh peas.
- Mix all the ingredients in a salad bowl, add finely chopped green onion and dill. Season with black pepper.
- Make mayonnaise and add to the salad. Stir everything well.
- Keep the salad in the fridge up to 4 days.
Homemade Mayo
Ingredients:
1 yolk
½ teaspoon mustard
¼ teaspoon of sea salt
½ cup olive oil
½ teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions:
Place all the ingredients in a small glass jar and process using a handheld blender for 10 seconds until creamy consistency.
Vegan Avocado Mayo
Ingredients:
1 avocado
2 teaspoons of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
2 teaspoons of onion powder
salt pepper
Instructions:
Using a blender, mix all the ingredients until smooth. Done!
The best wishes! Happy New Year!
Love, Zhenya
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