Russia · Salads
Russian Vinegret Salad
Boiled beets, potatoes, and carrots diced small and tossed with briny dill pickles, sauerkraut, green onions, and a simple sunflower oil dressing.
Ingredients
- raw beets, unpeeled500 g
- waxy potatoes400 g
- carrots200 g
- dill pickles200 g
- sauerkraut, drained and roughly chopped150 g
- green peas1 can
- scallion stalks3
- unrefined sunflower oil3 tbsp
- white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar1 tbsp
- salt and black pepper to taste
Method
- 1Cook the beets separately: place unpeeled beets in a pot, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 50–70 minutes until a knife slides in without resistance. The skin helps retain color and flavor — do not peel before cooking.
- 2In a separate pot, cook potatoes and carrots together in salted water 20–25 minutes until just tender. They should hold their shape when cut, not crumble. Drain and cool to room temperature.
- 3Peel all vegetables once cool. Dice beets, potatoes, and carrots into 1 cm cubes. Dice the pickles to the same size. Uniform dicing matters — each bite should contain a bit of everything.
- 4Toss the diced beets separately in 1 tablespoon of oil. This creates a thin coating that slows color bleeding into the other vegetables. Then combine everything in a large bowl: beets, potatoes, carrots, pickles, sauerkraut, peas if using, and green onions.
- 5Add the remaining oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Toss gently. Taste — the balance should be earthy from the beets, tangy from the pickles and sauerkraut, with the oil bringing it together.
- 6Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving. Overnight is better. The vegetables marinate in each other's juices and the flavors fully integrate.