Vinegret () or Russian vinaigrette is a salad in

Russian cuisine Russian cuisine is a collection of the different dishes and cooking traditions of the Russians, Russian people as well as a list of culinary products popular in Russia, with most names being known since pre-Soviet times, coming from all kinds ...

which is also popular in other post-Soviet states. The dish includes diced cooked vegetables ( red beets,

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

es,

carrot The carrot ('' Daucus carota'' subsp. ''sativus'') is a root vegetable, typically orange in colour, though heirloom variants including purple, black, red, white, and yellow cultivars exist, all of which are domesticated forms of the wild ...

s), chopped

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...

s, as well as

sauerkraut Sauerkraut (; , ) is finely cut raw cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria. It has a long shelf life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid formed when the bacteria ferment the sugar ...

and/or brined pickles.И. А. Фельдман, ''Любимые блюда''. Изд. Реклама, 1988, с. 180-186, (I. A. Feldman, ''Favourite dishes'', Reklama publishing house, 1988, p. 180-186; Russian)Л. Я. Старовойт, М. С. Косовенко, Ж. М. Смирнова, ''Кулінарія''. Київ, Вища школа, 1992, с. 218 (L. Ya. Starovoit, M. S. Kosovenko, Zh. M. Smirnova, ''Cookery''. Kyiv, Vyscha Shkola publishing house, 1992, p. 218; Ukrainian) Other ingredients, such as green peas or

beans A bean is the seed of some plants in the legume family (Fabaceae) used as a vegetable for human consumption or animal feed. The seeds are often preserved through drying (a ''pulse''), but fresh beans are also sold. Dried beans are tradition ...

, are sometimes also added. The naming comes from

vinaigrette Vinaigrette ( , ) is made by mixing an edible oil with a mild acid such as vinegar (acetic acid) or lemon juice ( citric acid). The mixture can be enhanced with salt, herbs and/or spices. It is used most commonly as a salad dressing, but can ...

, which is used as a dressing. However, in spite of the name, vinegar is often omitted in modern cooking, and

sunflower The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a species of large annual forb of the daisy family Asteraceae. The common sunflower is harvested for its edible oily seeds, which are often eaten as a snack food. They are also used in the pr ...

or other vegetable oil is just used. Some cooks add the

brine Brine (or briny water) is a high-concentration solution of salt (typically sodium chloride or calcium chloride) in water. In diverse contexts, ''brine'' may refer to the salt solutions ranging from about 3.5% (a typical concentration of seawat ...

from the pickled cucumbers or sauerkraut. Along with

Olivier salad Olivier is the French form of the given name Oliver. It may refer to: * Olivier (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Olivier (surname), a list of people * Château Olivier, a Bordeaux winery * Olivier, Louisiana, a rural p ...

and

dressed herring Dressed herring, colloquially known as shuba, herring under a fur coat, or furry herring ( or ), is a layered salad composed of diced spekesild covered with layers of grated boiled eggs, vegetables ( potatoes, carrots, beetroots), chopped on ...

, vinegret is served as ''zakuska'' on celebration tables in

Russophone This article details the geographical distribution of Russian-speakers. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the status of the Russian language often became a matter of controversy. Some Post-Soviet states adopted policies of Derus ...

communities. Despite the widespread popularity in Russia and Ukraine, the basic mixed salad recipes were adopted from Western European cuisines as late as the 19th century.В. В. Похлебкин, ''Национальные кухни наших народов''. Москва, изд. Пищевая пром-сть, 1980 (

William Pokhlyobkin William August Vasilyevich Pokhlyobkin (August 20, 1923 – April 15 (burial date), 2000; , Viliyam Vasilievich Pokhlyobkin) was a Soviet and Russian historian specializing in Scandinavian studies, heraldry, the diplomacy and international ...

, ''The Ethnic Cuisines of our Peoples''. Moscow, Food Industry publishing house, 1980; Russian) Originally, the term ''vinegret'' denoted any mixture of diced cooked vegetables dressed with vinegar. Later the meaning changed to any mixed salad with beetroots. Modern Russian and Ukrainian cookbooks still mention the possibility of adding mushrooms, meat or fish, but this is rarely practiced. Similar beetroot-based salads are prepared throughout Northern Europe. Examples are

herring Herring are various species of forage fish, belonging to the Order (biology), order Clupeiformes. Herring often move in large Shoaling and schooling, schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate wate ...

salad and beetroot salad in North German and Scandinavian cuisines (see also :de:Heringssalat, :sv:Rödbetssallad), as well as

rosolli In Finnish cuisine, rosolli is a salad eaten mostly as a cold side dish, in particular as part of the traditional Finnish Christmas meal. Overview Rosolli is made of cooked, diced root vegetables, especially beetroot, carrot and potato, ofte ...

Finnish cuisine Finnish cuisine is notable for generally combining traditional country fare and ''haute cuisine'' with contemporary continental-style cooking. Fish (food), Fish and meat (usually pork, beef or reindeer) play a prominent role in traditional Finl ...

, with the name for the latter stemming from ''rassol'' (), the Russian word for

. File:Vinigret.jpg, Vinegret with beans File:Vinaigrette salad.jpg, Vinegret with green peas

References

External links

*
Vinaigrette Recipe
Russian Recipes

Vinaigrette Recipe
Natasha's Kitchen
Vinegret - Russian Beet and Sauerkraut salad
{{Salads Salads Russian cuisine Ukrainian cuisine Soviet cuisine Vegetarian dishes of Ukraine

See also

References

External links