At the Immigrant's Table: Tangy Russian root vegetable salad

Name: Russian vinaigrette salad (vinegret salad)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 60 min
Ingredients: 3-4 medium-sized potatoes; 3-4 beets; 3 carrots; 1 onion; 1 cup of pickled sauerkraut or 3-4 dill pickles; the juice of one lemon; 3-4 TB Sunflower or olive oil; Salt and pepper (to taste)

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Russian vinaigrette salad (винегрет) is a tangy Russian beet salad that sings with the sweetness of beets, the earthiness of potatoes, and the zing of pickles. My family's vinaigrette recept is an easy, portable and delicious gluten free and vegan main dish salad.

What is Russian Vinegret Salad?

Russian vinegret (винегрет), or vinaigrette salad is comprised of a medley of cooked carrots, potatoes and beets, which get perked up by a pickle, sharp onion and a drizzle of good ol' oil and lemon or vinegar.

Some like to add zesty pickled sauerkraut or dill pickles, like my grandmother Berta's does. By any manner of Russian vegetable pickles will do!

What is special about this Russian salad recipe in my house is definitely that it's a pickled cabbage vinaigrette salad. My grandparents' signature Vinaigrette salad recipe became a favorite of mine when I was a student, and needed an easy, portable meal to take on the road (thanks for the recipe, grandma!).

Why I swear by this Russian beet salad

This affordable Russian salad is:

great when made ahead,
portable
doesn't require refrigeration for a few hours
once the cooked vegetables soak up all the dressing, it doesn't leak
Low in fat and chock-full of nutrition and vitamins
a perfectly filling meal
sweet and tangy

Russian vinaigrette salad history

Vinaigrette salad is a traditional Russian salad made with beets, potatoes, and your choice of pickled cucumbers or pickled cabbage. While it's a staple in Russian cuisine, but it's just as native to Ukrainian cooking, where it's often made with kidney beans (it's common in other post-Soviet cultures as well).

Russian beet salad has a long and interesting history. It is believed to have originated in Russia during the 19th century and was traditionally made with boiled potatoes, carrots, onions, and pickles. As it gained popularity, other ingredients such as beets, eggs, diced apples, and olives were added.

Russian Vinegret salad dressing was generally a mixture of oil (usually sunflower or canola) and vinegar mixed with various herbs and spices. Over time, the dish evolved to include cooked meats such as chicken or turkey.

Today, Russian vinaigrette beet salad is still a popular dish in Russia and around the world due to its rich flavor and versatility. It is often served as an accompaniment to main dishes or as part of a larger meal.

My family eats this every week, but we especially like to serve it on Russian New Year's Eve as part of a larger meal.

Ingredients for vinaigrette Russian salad:

Potatoes - you can use any potatoes you like. I tend to go for Yukon gold or red potatoes, which keep their shape well even after cooking and don't become too mealy even if you overcook the potatoes.
Beets - I like to boil the potatoes, beets and carrots all together. If you are short on time, you can use pre-cooked or even canned beets.
Carrots - any carrots work here, except miniature peeled carrots.
Onion - a regular yellow onion is best
Pickled cabbage (sauerkraut) - I like to use homemade pickled cabbage for my vinaigrette salad. My grandmother also makes it with dill pickles.
Lemon juice - some people use vinegar instead of lemon, but I find that it's not necessary when using sauerkraut.
Oil - traditional Russian vinegret salad is made with sunflower oil, but you can use vegetable oil or Canola oil instead.
Salt and pepper - to taste.

Equipment

How to make this vinaigrette salad recipe with sauerkraut

Prep and boil the vegetables

Wash and the typical Russian vegetables that this salad uses: clean beets, carrots and potatoes. At this point, you can either peel them, or proceed as my family does and cook without peeling.

Prick each vegetable a few times with a fork. Place all unpeeled vegetables in large pot, and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil potatoes and carrots and beets, and continue cooking for 20-30 minutes more, until they are easily pierced with a knife. Let vegetables cool to room temperature.

When cooked vegetables are cool enough to handle, do your best to peel them (potatoes will peel easily, beets a little less so, and carrots will likely be the hardest to peel), but don't worry if some skin remains. This is where the nutrients are!

Alternatively, you can also peel the vegetables before cooking them.

Dice vegetables

Chop all the boiled vegetables into ½-1-inch cubes, and mix them in a large mixing bowl.

Finely chop onion, and add to bowl with cooked vegetables.

If using sauerkraut, add to bowl as is. If using pickles, chop finely and add to the rest of the vegetables. Mix well.

Make vinaigrette salad dressing

Stir together vegetable oil, lemon juice and salt for this vinaigrette russian salad dressing.

Season vinegret salad and let rest

Season salad with dressing, mixing until all the veggies are well combined.

Let rest in refrigerator for 1.5 to 2 hours, or overnight. Taste, and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Serve this vinaigrette salad recipe topped with parsley.

Variations

As a time saving hack, use canned beets when making this salad! I also like to buy vacuum-sealed pre-cooked beets, which my kids love.
You can use roasted beet in the salad for a deeper, earthier flavor. You will need to wrap the beets in foil and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. You can see my method for roasting beets in this roasted beet salad.
For Ukrainian vinaigrette salad, a former boyfriend's dad used to make this vinaigrette salad recipe with kidney beans.
Try cooking the vegetables in the Instant Pot. You can cook the beets in the Instant Pot, boil potatoes in the Instant Pot, and cook the carrots in the Instant Pot, as well.
You can also add canned peas, eggs, diced apples, and olives, or even cooked chicken or turkey meat for other variations.
You can season the vinegret salad with mayonnaise instead of my vinegret salad dressing.

Serving Suggestions

This Russian vinaigrette salad recipe is a great winter or fall dish.

It's my favorite salad to make when winter is at its worst, and I feel like I can't possibly eat another roasted sweet potato. Potatoes, beets and carrots may not seem too inspiring, but trust me - with the treatment of a simple tangy dressing and the bite of pickled vegetables, once you make this salad it becomes a serious contender for a signature winter dish.

My family also serves it on December 31 with the following Russian New Year's recipes:

Other beet recipes:

FAQ

What can you use instead of Russian vinaigrette salad dressing?

You can use mayonnaise instead of the healthy dressing in this recipe for a more creamy take on vinaigrette salad.

Can I keep the skin on the potatoes and beets?

Yes! Vegetable skins contain loads of nutrients, and it's actually a great idea to leave the beets and potatoes unpeeled, or peel them after cooking.

Can I substitute the sunflower oil for a different oil?

You can use vegetable oil, Canola oil, grapeseed oil in this recipe. You can even use olive oil, but I don't love its dominant flavor.

What kind of pickles to use?

I recommend using sauerkraut, but if you prefer pickled cucumbers, use low-salt Russian cucumbers or homemade dill pickles for best results.

Can you use canned diced potatoes?

You can use canned potatoes and even canned beets to speed up the process.

Can you make vinaigrette salad gluten free?

This Russian beet salad is naturally gluten free.

Is vinaigrette salad vegan?

This vinegret salad is naturally vegan.

Recipe

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Russian vinaigrette salad (vinegret salad)

Ksenia Prints

5 from 89 votes

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Prep Time 30

Cook Time 1

Cooling time 2

Course Salad

Cuisine Russian, Ukrainian

Servings servings