Olivye – Ukrainian Potato Salad
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My husband makes this version of the famous olivye salad. The chives and dill add a nice element of freshness. The great thing about Russian and Ukrainian cooking – there is no one right way to make any recipe. Each family has their own version which get passed down through generations.
This olivye recipe really is the best I’ve tried. It takes some time to dice everything, but in the end you get the best potato salad that lasts almost a week in the fridge.
Ingredients for Olivye (potato salad):
1 pound of ham
3 medium potatoes
4 medium carrots.
1 (15 oz) can sweet peas, drained or 2 cups of thawed frozen peas
5 boiled eggs
5 medium-large pickles (I use Vlasic)
1/3 cup chopped green onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
3/4 cup to 1 cup mayo (to taste)
Salt and Pepper (to taste)
How to Make Olivye Potato Salad:
1. In the same pot, boil whole unpeeled potatoes and carrots for about 30 minutes, or until knife pierces them smoothly. Don’t let them get too soft.
2. In a separate pot put eggs in salted cold water. Bring to a boil, turn it off and leave it on the same burner with the lid on for 15 minutes (Remember this; it’s how to make the perfect hard-boiled eggs!!) Cool them down in cold water.
3. Remove the vegetables and eggs from boiling water and allow them to cool to room temperature prior to chopping. Skin the boiled potatoes and carrots with a small knife. It’s easier to skin the carrots if you make a slit down the length of the carrot and skin in a circle around the carrot. (One of the readers suggested alternative method for cooking carrots and potatoes. She said to try dicing raw carrots and potatoes then boiling them together about 12 min in unsalted water. Rinse with cold water and drain well on paper towels. Easy and consistent results!)
4. Chop ham, potatoes, carrots, pickles and eggs into equal size dice (pea size). The Vidalia Chop Wizard
5. Mix together potatoes, carrots, pickles, eggs, green onion, dill and mayo. Add more mayo, Salt and pepper to taste.
6. Fold in the peas last so they aren’t crushed.
If you prefer more onion, pickles, or anything else; add more. Its easy to modify this recipe!
Enjoy!! If you make olivye, let me know what is unique about your salad.
Olivye - Ukrainian Potato Salad - Olivier
My husband makes this version of the famous olivye or Olivier salad. The chives and dill add a nice element of freshness.
Ingredients
- 1 lb ham
- 3 medium potatoes
- 4 medium carrots
- 15 oz peas, drained
- 5 boiled eggs
- 5 pickles, (medium-large) I use Vlasic brand
- 1/3 cup green onion, chopped
- 1/4 cup dill, chopped
- 3/4 cup mayo, or to taste
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
Instructions
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In the same pot, boil whole unpeeled potatoes and carrots for about 30 minutes, or until knife pierces them smoothly. Don't let them get too soft.
-
In a separate pot put eggs in salted cold water. Bring to a boil, turn it off and leave it on the same burner with the lid on for 15 minutes. Cool them down in cold water.
-
Remove the vegetables and eggs from boiling water and allow them to cool to room temperature prior to chopping.
-
Skin the boiled potatoes and carrots with a small knife. It's easier to skin the carrots if you make a slit down the length of the carrot and skin in a circle around the carrot.
-
Chop ham, potatoes, carrots, pickles and eggs into equal size dice (pea size).
-
Mix together potatoes, carrots, pickles, eggs, green onion, dill and mayo. Add more mayo, Salt and pepper to taste.
-
Fold in the peas last so they aren't crushed. If you prefer more onion, pickles, or anything else; add more. Its easy to modify this recipe!
Enjoy!!
Recipe Notes
One of the readers suggested alternative method for cooking carrots and potatoes. She said to try dicing raw carrots and potatoes then boiling them together about 12 min in unsalted water. Rinse with cold water and drain well on paper towels. Easy and consistent results!
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
Hi Natasha,
I just wanted to comment and let you know of all the Russian/Ukrainian/Slavic recipe websites online, I consistently return to yours. Your recipes result in food that tastes most like what I grew up eating. I was looking at an olivier salad recipe that called for added vinegar, and get this – an orange. I said to myself “I need to see Natasha’s recipe.” Lo and behold, this is exactly what I was looking for! My only changes will be to use chicken instead of ham, and to use a 50:50 mix of sour cream and mayonnaise. I also see a lot of recipes add apples, but my brother is allergic, so it’s been a long time since I’ve had olivier salad with apples. Love this recipe and all of the ones on your website. I might make Uzbek plov soon too 😀
Thank you, Sasha! So glad you love my recipes.
This is a Pascha (Easter) staple in our house! I also like to make it for Nativity… and Dormition… just about every feast that comes at the end of a fasting period. 🙂 Some of the Russian ladies at my church will make it with onions, or mix up the ingredients in some other way, but this remains hands down the best version I’ve ever tasted.
Thank you, we appreciate your good comments!
I am making this as a side dish for some Ukrainian fundraisers I am organizing. There seems to be a shortage of fresh dill in England currently though. What should I use as a substitute?
Parsley works well as an alternative.
Thank you so much. I’ll keep looking for dill though for the taste. I’m really excited about my Ukrainian menu and raising money to help Ukraine in a small but delicious way!
My husband is ukrainian and I have now made this recipe multiple times and it is excellent. Exactly what my husband ate back home. I use kolbassa instead of ham usually but ham is perfect too.
Thank you so much
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Paige! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
The peas must be from a can…is there a brand that isn’t mushy? Would frozen (thawed to use) be ok? Better?
Hi Lee, this recipe used frozen (thawed) peas.
Another type of meat slicer is the drum slicer. These appliances will be perfect for cooks who like to take large pieces of meat and use them as the main ingredient in another dish. In fact, some people even choose to leave out the bones when making a drum slicer.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
I love this salad! I am of Eastern European roots but do not have much experience with the cuisine. If I remember correctly, the first time I had this salad was when I bought some at a local Mediterranean market made with chicken and I absolutely fell in love with it! I thought it was a Persian food! I would be very interested to know your opinion on the various brands of mayonnaise. I am obsessed with mayo, I enjoy it more than I should! Thank you for all your fantastic recipes!
Hi Lois, we equally love Best Foods and Hellman’s brands. Also, we use the Kirkland brand from Costco. We do love Real Mayo the most, versus lighter versions.
This looks amazing. Can’t wait to make it. Question- For the pickles, dill or sweet? Both sound good but I want to make it authentic.
I use sour dill pickles that I but at Costco. Let me know how it turns out 😬
Natasha, I am so grateful that you recommended Vlasic brand! I used to make olivye but with other brands (before I searched for your recipe) and it was good, but something was off, I could not put my finger on what. When I made it with Vlasic, it really pulled it all together! So perfect! Exactly what I was looking for! You are genius! Thank you million times!
Hi Diana, good to know that you use and like it too! Thanks for your review, we appreciate it.
Followed your recipe making Olivye for the first time and it turned out PERFECT
That’s so great! I’m so happy you enjoyed that Edward!
THANK YOU so much for such delicious recipes. Do you have you’re recipe book published yet???? 🙏❤️
Hi Rose, thank you for the wonderful feedback. We don’t yet but are slowly working towards that goal.
We called it Niislel salad. It is probably introduced and adopted from Russia. I am not a fan of the salad though i can make it. I usually add yellow/red onion not green onion, finely diced. This gives nice sharp taste but not too overpowering. Some ppl do add canned corns, drained.
Thank you so much for sharing that with us Enkh!
Oh, in Mongolian. In Latvian it’s rasols lol. Dear ‘child’ has many names. But it is originally olivye and that’s how it should be called, really.
Absolutely delicious. Love dill flavour! such a nice addition to the salad. Thanks for another great recipe!
You’re so welcome, Tatyana. Thank you for your excellent review!
How does this not have cucumbers or egg?I have never had Olivie without an egg 🙈🙈🙈🙈
It does have hard-boiled eggs in it, five, in fact. and five pickled cucumbers. Go back and reread the recipe. Maybe because all the ingredients are chopped up so finely you can’t tell that they are there.
This is looks identical to what an old bf from Ukraine made me a few times. I’ve also tasted a version made from a Croatian lady. My brasilian friend makes this with chicken and butter instead of mayo. They use whatever they have but mainly stick to these things. Every 5years or so I crave it. Thank you for posting this simple yet elegant recipe!!!
You’re welcome Kim! I’m so glad you enjoyed that.
Such a beautiful salad and great clear instructions. Just turned Christmas Day and this is about to go into the fridge for lunch tomorrow
Yum! This is so good for leftovers! Merry Christmas!
This is obviously everyone’s holiday staple, just not sure why you call it Ukrainian though. It was created by Lucien Olivier who worked as a chef of the Hermitage and quickly became a Russian signature dish. So you could call it Slavic since Ukranians love it too, but it’s not a Ukranian salad.
Hi Nessa, thank you so much for sharing that feedback with us!
My favorite Ukrainian salad. When it is made by Ukrainian it is Ukrainian, original French recipe was with sea food.
I’ve made this twice now–once for my family and once for a church potluck. It was a hit both times!
The chopping does take a long time, but the second time around, I chopped several of the ingredients a day early. Also, I prefer the alternate method (at the bottom of the recipe) for boiling the carrots and potatoes. Skinning them after boiling them just took too long for me.
I forgot to mention this: My husband doesn’t like potato salad, but he LOVED this!
That’s so awesome Krista! That’s when you know its good!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
I replaced the ham with salmon and half the mayo with sour cream. It was a huge hit with all the Ukrainian families at our daughter’s emersion daycare.
Awww that’s the best! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
My 4 Ukrainian daughters and one Polish husband just scarfed this down. I don’t care for any of the ingredients so I couldn’t taste test it as I went along. I followed the recipe (doubling it) and all 5 say it’s perfect. We have plenty left over for the next couple of days. It was labor intensive, took me way longer than it says- but next time I’ll peel the potatoes and carrots prior to cooking to save time.
I’m happy they enjoyed that recipe, Brooke!
I had heard of the salad but never had it; I found your recipe last year for New Year’s Day and used it and my mom especially LOVED it. I just left out the ham because I’m vegetarian, and it was still delicious. I will make it for New Year’s again this year. Thank you for sharing!
You’re so welcome Kristen! We do have a chicken version here also. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Love this recipe! It takes a little time, but is so easy and rewarding. My parents go crazy for this salad, and it’s always even better the next day!
I’m glad to hear the recipe is such a hit! Thanks for sharing your excellent review!
I like to put sweet piccalilli and diced edam cheese in mine.
Yum, that sounds delish!
I want to make this recipe, and replace the potatoes with cauliflower, to reduce the carbs. Any suggestions before I begin?
Hi Dave, I have not tested that to advise but one of my readers, Lucy, mentioned she uses turnips or cauliflower instead of the potatoes.
Natasha, do you have suggestions as to how to boil potatoes for a salad.? What is your choice of potato?
Best, Elena
PS Thank you for a wonderful site, it is my go-to resource for dishes I miss from childhood. And more.
Elena, thank you for the compliment 😬. I have the steps how to cook potatoes in the recipe. I would avoid yellow potatoes or the ones that have very little starch.
Made this today for my husband and our nephew before he returns to Ukraine this week. They both thouroughly approved. As a non-Ukrainian in a family where everyone is still living in Ukraine I appreciate your recipes so much when they visit. Even my mother in law liked my honey prune cake last year.
You’re welcome! I’m glad I can help and that everyone is enjoying the recipes! Thanks for following and sharing your wonderful review!
I was expecting/hoping you would use kielbasa, like you mentioned in your recipe version with chicken.
I was born in Cuba, when the Castro Revolution started I was about 3 or 4 years old, the city we lived in was surrounded and nothing came in nor went out for two years. I used to be a finiki eater until my late 20’s I tried traditional German cusine, then in my late 30’s I was introduced to traditional Japanese Cusine starting with Sushi and Sashimi, then traditional Chinese, what cant I tell you. Now I’m open to at least try, and it’s a good chance I will like it.
This Potatoe Salad sounds awesome, yet something tells me with Kielbasa would be absolutely the best.
Hi Clara, you can use a variety of meats – kielbasa, chicken, ham. We like to change it up and sometimes are just using what we have on hand 🙂
Hi. I tried this and it was perfect! Loved it. One question though, why peel the potatoes and carrot after boiling and not before?
Hi Draya, it helps to keep the nutrients in (or so I hear), as well as the flavor and it seems to absorb less water while cooking.
I just made this and took a picture to show you but can’t post it I see. The only changes I made was to double the amount of potatoes (so the Irish in me was satisfied 😂), and used Miracle Whip since I’m out of regular mayonnaise right now. Kept everything else the same. It’s delicious right now and the flavors haven’t even married yet!! Thank you, thank you! Being mostly Bavarian German, I adore all East European recipes! Yum!! But being married to an Hispanic, spent most of my life cooking Mexican 😂!!
I’m glad you enjoy the recipe Jan! If you are on Facebook, I would love it if you joined our private Facebook group where you can share your yummy photos!!
The Estonian version of the potato salad consists of potatoes, ham or sausage, cucumber, eggs, pickles (salty or marinated but not sour), canned peas, apple and onion. Apple and cucumber make the salad taste really fresh. Carrots are optional, I prefer to leave them out. For sauce, it’s a combination of mayo, sour cream or light Greek yoghurt and – my secret ingredient – kefir. Kefir is particularly great when working with starchy potatoes. Seasoned with salt, pepper and dried dill.
Sounds delicous Karin! Thanks for sharing your suggestions!
I can’t wait to try out this recipe, it looks really tasty! What type of pickles do you use for this? The sweet gherkin kind, or more sour like dill pickles?
Steph I use sour dill pickles that I but at Costco. Let me know how it turns out 😬
I love this salad! I made it a few times when we lived in Odessa. Thanks for sharing!
That’s great Karen! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Hi, Natasha! Do you mean “pea size” is bigger holes or smaller one? Thank you.
I use the smaller dicing holes on the chopper to achieve pea-sized pieces 🙂
Would you recommend using Oscar Meyer Bologna instead of ham? Or does it even matter? Totally looking forward to making this.
I think ham would probably taste a little better, but you can use that if you prefer it. Enjoy!
I took your advice. The ham tasted great with it. Plus my Russian students loved your recipe. Thanks again.
Thank you for posting! We made this when we were visiting some friends in Ukraine and I remember loving this salad. I still remember chopping up all the ingredients into “uniform pieces” to keep the traditional style. Delicious!
Jessie, you are very welcome and I’m glad it brings back memories from Ukraine 😁.
We love this recipe! My husband is Russian and ever since I made this salad the first time, it’s a staple in our home. We make it every week! We just tried the vinaigrette recipe and we loved it as well, so I guess we will be alternating between them.
Thank you Natasha
I’m so happy to hear that!! This olivye salad is one that we make often as well and it gets eaten up quickly, especially while we are living with my parents because they love it too!
I love this Olivye recipe! It reminds me of the one my grandpa used to make. Every time I make it, it’s a hit with everyone who tries it (I’ve made it a few times now). The only thing I do add to it, is a few drops of yellow mustard and it’s so delish!
I’m so happy you enjoyed it. I love your idea of adding yellow mustard! Brilliant!
Love this recipe as well. Made it countless times and tweaked my family recipe as well! Thank you!
Thank you Ksenia! I hope you try the chicken olivye sometime. I hope you LOVE that one too! 😉
Wow looks really way good Natasha am wondering if it would work with leftover chicken since I can’t eat ham because of Jewish dietary laws with the can of peas do I drain the juice and reserve some or drain it all love the different colors in the salad
Yes, I have just the recipe for you ?. Click here.
Saw the other olivye salad mmmm chicken and potatoes what could be better lmao this is on my list to try awesome thanx hunbun
Hi Natasha, my husband and I visited Russia 6 times while in the process of adopting our two beautiful Russian children, a daughter and a son. We loved the food there. Your recipes have been a go to for a lot of the Russian recipes we like to use for our family events to celebrate Russian holidays.
I made the Olivye Salad (my husband said it was the best he has ever tasted) Borscht, Chebureki and Syrniki. All was a big hit. The kids just love Chebureki. !!!
Awww that’s so awesome! thank you so much for the awesome review 🙂
Hey!!! I love salat olivier!!!! A Russian salad invented by a french man 😛 when you use the gherkins do you use whole? The recipe calls for 5 medium/large gherkins but do you mean whole? I am sorry I travel so frequently that I get confused with measurements. Every country has its own terminology.
Rockey, I used whole gherkins and just diced them up :). This salad never gets old, we just had some at our picnic yesterday on the lake :).
Natasha what kind of ham are you using for this salad?
Thank you
I think it may have been a hickory him or a black forest ham. Either one will work well. Honey him is not my favorite because it’s a tiny bit too sweet for the salad. But that would work too if that is all you have.
Natasha, what kind of ham are you using?
Thank you!
I prefer hickory or black forest. Honey ham isn’t my favorite because it’s a teensy bit too sweet for this salad, but even if you used honey ham, it still tastes great 🙂
This version is almost the same as what we do. Only no carrots and pickles, and we have apple in it. So it taste fresh 🙂 Maybe I should try it this way when we have the next birthday to celebrate. It seems very nice !
I guess I should try it with Apple! Thanks for sharing your version. 🙂
Very close to Polish vegetable salad, jut no ham in the Polish one.
Is there any meat in the Polish version of the salad?
I made this, this is soo good recipe! I was thinking agh long to make but when I started making it it wasn’t too long me I was doing other stuff while potatoes and eggs cooking or preparing and cutting bologna while that cooks.. Thanks Natasha for great Recipe haven’t eaten this or made this for a long time but I have a lot of time during the day to cook great food glad I came along this website and glad Russian/Ukrainian food still exists. LOL I love Russian food looking forward to looking into your So glad you made this website :))
I’m so glad you are enjoying the website and recipes! 🙂 I have recipes from all over the world featured here, but my first food love will always be Russian/Ukrainian food!
When boiling potatoes for this salad I cut them into cubes while they are raw, and add one table spoon of vinegar when boiling. The potatoes need to be boiled for about five minutes once the water comes to a boil. The vinegar prevents the potatoe cubes from falling apart. Super easy! And the cubes look perfect.
That’s a great tip Nadia, I have to try this next time I’ll make Olivye :). Thank you for sharing your tip.
Hi, Natasha! Thanks for always posting such great recipes! Check out my salads at http://thebestisyettocook.wordpress.com/! I made one with beets and another with cabbage. Thanks!
Thanks for sharing Sophia, I look forward to exploring your blog :).
Hi Natasha,
I just came across your channel on YouTube just recently with this recipe. I am Polish European and we also have the same type of salad for us it’s called “Salatka Jarzynowa” or Vegetable salad in English. You got great recipes on here can’t wait to try them out..:)
Thank you Ania! I think the Polish and Ukrainian cuisines have alot in common. Do you know of any great polish food blogs that you could recommend? Or have any Polish recipes you’d like to share? I’d love to try more polish foods.
yesterday – Zuppa Toscana ); today – Olivye.
Great Job, Natasha !
Keep it up. Very impressed with your dedication. Thanks a lot.
I’m so glad you’re enjoying the recipes! You are on a roll! 🙂
Delicious and reminds me of growing up in Russia. The only thing I did different is add a bit of pickle juice and sunflower oil (as unfiltered as you can get–I get mine from a Russian store nearby) at the end before mixing, made it taste super authentic!
That’s so great! Thank you for sharing that with me.
thank you so much for sharing your version of this yummy salad. It worked out really perfectly. my husband is extremely picky regarding the food choice. He really appreciated it. Spasibo ogromnoje Natasha
You’re so very welcome 🙂 I’m so happy you and your hubby liked it!
This looks incredible! Do you know approximately how many cups total this will make? Thank you!
Hmmmm,… honestly I’ve never measured. I think maybe 10 cups?
I make a thing like this but I don’t call it Olivier salad because I do not always use potatoes (because I am pre-diabetic and I would like to keep the “pre” in there, so I eat less starchy foods). Instead, I use turnips and/or cauliflower.
I also rarely use ham: I use whatever’s on hand, and ham is rarely on hand. I have made it with any kind of meat (in my house that usually means chicken, but I have used beef and lamb and tuna from a can) and without any.meat. Beans of any type, sometimes from a can and sometimes cooked from dry, can slip in there.
And I add in whatever vegetables I feel like using. Sometimes if fresh veggies are scarce I’ll use a frozen vegetable mixture.
Can you see why I don’t call it by the same name, even if I am thinking “Olivier” in my mind?
Those sound like some very tasty substitutions! Thanks for sharing and yes, I can totally see why you don’t always call it olivier. 🙂
In Georgia we love this salad and make it just the same way as described in your recipe though with one difference, we don’t put any kind of meat at all. Tastes awesome. :)))
Oh a vegetarian version! I bet it tastes great! 🙂
I make the olyvie salad just like you but instead of canned peas i use frozen steamed peas to give it that more green and It tastes a little more crunchy.
That’s a very good option as well.
One more thing, have never used ham in my ‘Polish Salad’ but definitely will next time. Thanks for the idea.
Hi Natahsa, This looks fantastic! Thank you for sharing this recipe. Polish people call this Polish Salad. :o) I just have a question about your chopper, your pieces look so perfect – do you slice the veggies first and then dice them in the chopper?
Yes, I slice them first to the thickness I want and then use the Vidalia chopper that I reference above 🙂
Making this salad today. Its my husband’s favorite! Only thing I do differently is add a cup of thawed peas from the freezer. To make it thaw fast you can add to warm water for a few minutes. Got the idea from my mom and it tastes very good:)
Thank you for the tip Oksana, fresh peas also give more vibrant color to the salad :).
I have a suggestion for Olivye. If yours is too runny, try putting chopped pickles on dry paper towel (i usually fold it), in a separate bowl. and change the paper towel a few times, until its almost dry! and put them in when ready to mix everything together. It works for me!! I hope this will help someone!! 🙂
That is a great tip! Thank you! 🙂
What is vegenaise ? Since we eat very little meat in our ome–I need suggestions for other non-meat items to add.
Thanks,
Sally
Vegenaise is dairy free eggless mayonnaise. You can make this salad without meat. Does anyone have any suggestions for non-meat items to add?
Sally,
Just experiment I say.One week you can have this salad without meat. Another week add cauliflower or broccoli. Have fun.
Sally,
Once I used shrimp instead of meat. It worked perfectly!
An original recipe actually calls for chicken and an apple for this salad.
But any kind of meat works great and any modifications are worth to try.
We adopted our kids from Russia and I fell in love with this on the first trip! I’ve made it many times for Russian Christmas potlucks and have an easy cheat that has fooled Russian friends! I start by boiling frozen hashbrowns (cubed style, not shredded), use diced ham and a drained can of peas & carrots along with the mayo and spices. This greatly reduces the time needed to dice! 🙂
Wow that sounds much easier. Brilliant! Thank you for sharing!
That would really cut down on the time. Thank you for sharing the “cheat” :).
Actually, in Lithuania we do the same recipe and we call this sald – white salad. Ussually we make this on every birthday! Great taste, love it! 😉
Oh cool! Do you make it the same way? I’m very curious!
One of our church members makes this, hasn’t in a while, but thank you for posting this…it’s the first salad to disappear at church functions…
Same with our church functions. This salad always appears and disappears 🙂
Hi there – thanks for this recipe. I haven’t had this salad since my mom passed away. I was really happy to find it.
You are welcome Hannah 😀
In Spain, this salad is called Russian salad
Wow, you are all the way from Spain? Welcome to the site! 🙂
Yes, I’m another emigrant who miss our food 😀
Hi,
Just spoke to my mom about finding this salad and she told me that this salad is originally a European dish maybe French or Italian.Have you heard that before? Have a good day.
God bless,
Marina
Hi,
I am so excited to find this recipe. Smiles. I make this salad every week.I have been eating it since childhood but since I started my diet this year I had to change things around.I use organic chicken, cucumbers in brine, Vegenaise and no potatoes. Grins.Thanks so much for posting this.
P.S. Shocked to find out that this salad in English is a potato salad.=0o
Is it good with vegenaise? I was just thinking about that yesterday!
Hi,
Yes it is good with Vegenaise and much healthier too.I just add one spoonful of the stuff to the bowl.There is not much of a taste difference unless you have a very sensitive pallet.
I second the green apple suggestion, i mince it in, no one can tell what it is but it adds a little something. I also use fresh cucumbers. The olivie i grew up with is similar to this recipe but the one DH prefers is what i refer to as a “white olivie”. His recipe is: rotiserrie chicken breasts, potatoes, eggs, pickles, skin removed cucumbers, dill and peas- no carrots or colorful meat …
Anyhow, what i actually wanted to share was what I do now days that happened by accident, I dice raw potatoes, then boil, then drain in strainer and dry on paper towels then toss in salad.(i actually drain all diced ingredients on a paper towel: pickles, onions, peas etc) Sounds insane but it gives me the best results in terms of cooked potatoes and it makes it much faster. Including boiling and dicing i am done in an hour, no time to wait for everything to cool.
Try frozen steam peas instead of canned, they keep their shape and color better too… i tried this after reading about some recent transplant from Russia that said canned peas are all wrong and she uses frozen.
Thank you Anna. I think this calls for Olivye II. 🙂
I made it with dry dill and it turned out a bit sour. I don’t knw what I did wrong. Is it a big difference putting dry dill instead of fresh? I put 2 tbsp
You only want to use either fresh dill or dill that has been frozen fresh. Dry dill is best for soups. Hope this helps.
I add regular onion instead of green onion. but I will have to try green onion
We’ve used both and found them to be equally good 🙂
My Mom call this “Lazy Olivye”, the real Olivye should be prepared with 3 types of meat: ham, bologna, and roast beef, all cubed. Well, at least that’s what my Mom says =D
Wow that IS fancy! I’ve never heard of it that way. Are there any other changes or is it just the meat that’s different?
Well, you know, there are some variations: in Summer we used fresh cucumbers, in Winter – pickled, salted mostly =). Nowadays I use both, the smell of fresh cucumbers makes Olivye awesome! Try this sometime, you’ll be amazed =D
Oh! There is one more idea: omit mayo and peas, and this recipe becomes a great base for Okroshka (Окрошка), just add a cup of kvas (квас) in each serving.
I’ve heard kvas was good in okroshka. Do you have a favorite brand or do you use homemade?
This is one of our favorite salads…I use chicken sometimes and we like it that way too!
hi natasha!
thanks so much for always posting great recipes! you are talanted!!!
our unique way of makin olivie is actualy we use franks(chicken, pork, beef) instead of bologna! and its goood.. but i definatly wana try bologna cuz my husband lovees it.. thanks so much for this idea!!!
one more thing, would u happen to know how to make crab salad? or do u have it on your blog and i missed it ? :/
thanks 🙂
Hi Vika, franks sound good too! I do have a recipe posted for crab salad. Here’s the link: https://natashaskitchen.com/2009/11/28/russian-style-crab-salad-recipe/
Hi Natasha 🙂
I’m making Olivye today and it was so refreshing to no that you have a cooking blog because I could not rememer exactly all that went into this salad lol
My mom makes it with chicken and I’m doing it today to and instead of so much mayo for those who are watching there waistline try adding sour cream and mayo half & half you can’t tell the differance and so much better for you 🙂 Thank You for your awesome Blog!!!
Alona Tupis (Melnik)
I also add fresh cucumber. Just like the dill and chives, it gives the salad a fresh taste!
I add a couple of green apples to my olivye, it tastes incredible! I also use baby pickles instead of large ones. I find that large pickles are too juicy and the juice makes the salad too moist for my taste. I don’t have that problem with baby dills. Thanks for sharing your version! Some of your tips I’ll use next time when making olivye. God bless!
I really like your idea of using the baby dills. I have made olivye that seemed to turn out just a little too juicy. That’s brilliant! Thank you!
Hello, and thank you for this great recipe! Having returned from an extended stay in Ukraine, I had a hankering for Olivye, and following the instructions this one brought back fond memories of Kiev! Looking forward to trying some other things as well.
thats the same reason my mother in law didnt make this salad often. So, i gave her this slicer for Christmas and she loves it
I never tried this salad with green onions, so i will give it a try next time i make it… Bed, Bath, and Beyond or Macy’s sell a onion shredder (but you can use it for everything) for only 15 dollars. Everybody in my family uses it to make olivye and it seriously takes us no longer than 20 minutes to cut everything. It also looks nice because all the ingridients are cut same size. Just wanted to share this with everybody to make life easier. Hope it helps
I will deeeefinitely look into that. We have a bed bath & beyond close by. I admit thats the main reason this salad doesn’t get made as often is because it takes awhile. Thanks!!
Thank you ilona. i definantly need one 🙂
We are having dinner at my house tomorrow but lucky for me my mom volunteered to make olivye (since its so time consuming). My mom always saves the egg yolk from one of the hard boiled eggs and then after she put the peas on there she used a cheese shreader(ms?)to shred the egg yolk for decorational purpose . (hope my explaining made sense)
That is a good idea. And, yes, it did make sense. I think I’ll try it next time. Sounds like an easy way to fancy up the salad.