Russian salad

A timeless dish

The Russian salad is a delicious traditional Piedmontese recipe: A cold dish prepared mainly with potatoes and cooked vegetables dressed with mayonnaise. Often presented as an appetizer or as a side dish in all its many variations, the Russian salad hardly leaves the Italian tables during the holidays.

The Russian Origin

The Russian salad recipe began to spread in Italy at the end of the nineteenth century. There are several hypotheses regarding the birth of this dish. Many believe that it was created in Russia around the mid-nineteenth century, when it was first prepared by the French-born chef Lucien Oliver in his Hermitage restaurant in Moscow.
However, the recipe of the dish has changed since that first attempt, both in Italy and in Russia. Several sources believe that it was originally based on meat, tongue, sausage, ham, truffle, aspic, capers, and salted anchovy fillets.

Its Piedmontese Origin

According to another hypothesis, the Russian salad was born in Italy, more precisely at the court of the Savoy.
Here, on the occasion of the visit of the Tsar of Russia, a court cook decided to offer the guest an ancient Piedmontese beetroot salad. To celebrate the guest, the dish would have been prepared with typical Russian products, such as carrots and potatoes, to which cream was added, the symbol of snow.
The Tsar then brought the recipe with him, which in a short time spread to Russian territory and Europe, preferring, however, the use of mayonnaise to that of cream.

Curiosity About Its Name

In Russia, they call it "Oliver salad", in Italy, Spain and Portugal "Russian salad", while in Germany and Denmark "Italian salad". In France, it is called "Salade piémontaise", and finally in Croatia, Slovenia and Hungary it is call it "French salad".
The different denominations testify to the uncertainty about the origin of the dish.