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This Russian Vinaigrette Recipe with Beets and Sauerkraut is another “staple” of Russian/ Ukrainian cooking. Its also a very pretty & vibrant Russian salad.
I think every Slavic person has either made it or tried it. My sis tells me that canned beets taste just as good in Russian cooking and it reduces the hassle and mess of cooking them for 1 hour or more. I will definitely try that next time.
Most people who make this salad use their own pickled cabbage but sauerkraut works just as well. This is my mom’s recipe. This salad is great for parties because you can make it a day ahead. It tastes even better the next day. You may want to scale down the recipe if you are making it for your family.
Ingredients for Russian Vinigrette:
3 medium beets (or 2 (14.5 oz) cans of beets , drained)
3 medium potatoes
3 medium carrots
1/2 cup sauerkraut, drained
3 medium pickles
2 Tbsp sunflower or olive oil
1 Tbsp white vinegar
1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
How to Make Russian Vinaigrette:
1. In a medium pot, boil beets for 1 hour or until it can easily be pierced with a knife. OR use canned beets which don’t require any cooking. I peeled beets before cooking, much easier than peeling them boiled.
2. In a separate pot, boil potatoes and carrots about 30 minutes or until a knife goes smoothly through the potatoes. Don’t overcook the potatoes.
3. Drain the vegetables and refrigerate or let them stand until they cool to room temp (or cooler).
4. Peel the skins from the potatoes, beets and carrots, than dice pickles, beets, potatoes, carrots & finely dice onion. The Vidalia Chop Wizard is the secret to make the process much faster :). Place diced beets in a separate bowl.
5. Mix beets with 1st Tbsp of Sunflower Oil separately, so that beets coloring will not get on the other ingredients as much.
6. Mix together beets and the rest of ingredients with the 2nd Tbsp of Sunflower or Olive oil and 1 Tbsp of vinegar. If desired, add more sauerkraut or pickles to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Enjoy 🙂
Russian Vinaigrette Recipe with Beets and Sauerkraut
Ingredients
- 3 medium beets, or 2 (14.5 oz cans of beets, drained)
- 3 medium potatoes
- 3 medium carrots
- 1/2 cup sauerkraut, drained
- 3 medium pickles
- 2 Tbsp sunflower or olive oil
- 1 Tbsp white vinegar
- 1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
Instructions
- In a medium pot, boil beets for 1 hour or until it can easily be pierced with a knife. OR use canned beets which don't require any cooking. I peeled beets before cooking, much easier than peeling them boiled.
- In a separate pot, boil potatoes and carrots about 30 minutes or until a knife goes smoothly through the potatoes. Don't overcook the potatoes.
- Drain the vegetables and refrigerate or let them stand until they cool to room temp (or cooler).
- Peel the skins from the potatoes, beets and carrots, than dice pickles, beets, potatoes, carrots & finely dice onion. Place diced beets in a separate bowl.
- Mix beets with 1st Tbsp of Sunflower Oil separately, so that beets coloring will not get on the other ingredients as much.
- Mix together beets and the rest of ingredients with the 2nd Tbsp of Sunflower or Olive oil and 1 Tbsp of vinegar. If desired, add more sauerkraut or pickles to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use.
I tried making the vinaigrette using two cans of beets. Mine didn’t come out so good and I can’t pinpoint what it was missing….seems too many beets from 2 cans. I’m sure if I tasted yours I would understand what went amiss with mine. Also, I think the potatoes made a difference also….I used russet potatoes and I think I over cooked them to boot. Would a waxy potato make a difference in the taste?
I think its probably more of a problem with the canned beets. The home cooked ones take awhile and can be a little messy, but the flavor is much better 🙂
Thank you….I will try with fresh cooked beets next time, although I have never used fresh I imagine the flavor is better….canned is always not as good.
Where DID you get that cutting tool?? This WILL make my life easier…:)))
It’s called Vidalia Chop Wizard, you can buy it at Amazon or places like Bath Bed & Beyond.
O! I love your cutting tool!
I love your pictures!
Everybody cooks a bit differently. Hope you don’t mind if I add…
In my salad-Vinegret you wouldn’t see sauerkraut, but the rest of ingredients + canned beans and parsley.
Oh, forgot to mention – I usually bake my beats in the foil in oven for this salad. Thank you.
Sorry just noticed it says vinaigrette.
Does anyone know how many calories is a cup of Vinaigrette?
Hmmm, no idea. Sorry…
There is about 52 calories in a cup of vinegar.
This is such a staple for our family! We add fresh cucumbers also giving it a fresh smell and taste 🙂
oooh fresh cucumbers sound great! Thank you! 🙂
Agree with mixing the beets with oil, separately to the rest of the mix, so you don’t colour the rest of the salad. Also, I add a bit of mustard and vinegar(v.small amount) to the dressing.
I should try mustard next time :).
No, herring is not eaten with vinegret, but with shuba, which is another style of beetroot-potato-carrot based salad when all the veggies are layered with mayonaise with herring at the bottom, ok? Please don’t confuse the two.:)
Hi Slava, I do have a recipe for shuba posted too, but I don’t like herring in there so I use smoked salmon.
Yes, we always have vinigrette on lenten Christmas Eve – after the first star has been spotted, of course! – making sure we have 12 different dishes for the apostles and one more for Christ, though vinigrette is not limited to Christmas Eve. We add an apple (nice crispy crunch and gives more texture) as well as kidney beans, but not canned. The boiled beans have a much nicer texture. We also make it the day/night before so the flavors can mesh a bit too. Yes, we use sauerkraut as well as dill pickles. As anything Russian/Ukrainian, a bit of dill can be added. BTW: always herring for Christmas Eve, so I always do associate vinigrette and herring!
Ира
Thank you for sharing! I definitely want to try apple next time I make this salad.
Also before mixing, you can pour an oil on the beets and stir, so that they do not colour all salad…
Thanks for the tip!
Beets can be prepared in a bit shorter time: Boil them approximately 35-40 mins in water with vinegar, but without salt, then immediately put them under cold water and cool them that way… They should be ready for post-processing 🙂
Tasted this salad last weekend on Ukrainian Christmas dinner,.. so delicious and love to look at.. I am making it this weekend for a Christening dinner!
So glad you enjoyed it!!
Love Vinigret! I add kidney beans to it. yumm!!!!
Just when I thought it couldn’t get any healthier; you proved me wrong. Thanks for the tip!
My recipe is very similar, though I love going “all the way Russian” and use unrefined sunflower seed oil, which is much more popular in Russia.
Sounds good, I actually have that in my pantry
sunflower seed oil and salt is best for the dressing..
Thanks for the tip Angie :).
I love eating this salad at a local Ukranian restaurant, and was so pleased to find your recipe. Can you give me any advice on what kind of pickles to use? I’m limited to what is found in American chain groceries. Thank you! We’re all really looking forward to it.
You can really use any kind of pickles – I used Vlasic (see second picture with all the ingredients)
I think Irina is right on with the pairing with salted herring. Not sure whether that was tradition, or how that pairing came along, but it works! I also like to use a can of peas to my vinaigrette recipe.
Here’s my version of the Russian vinaigrette, Natasha: http://nami-nami.blogspot.com/2007/12/russian-vinaigrette-salad.html 🙂
Now where did you get the idea to use canned beets?
Hmmm… I guess I am just pure genius. Ok, if you read the first paragraph, you would see that I gave you credit for it. But, snap; I didn’t mention your name!!! Ok, so you, Alla, are the genius!!
Yum! I love “vinegret.” I don’t normally add onions and I use either pickles or sauerkraut, but not both. Otherwise, my recipe is essentially the same as yours. I don’t eat fish any more, but, if I remember correctly, vinegret pairs really well with salted herring. Have you ever tried this combination?
I’ve never tried that combination. Sounds interesting.
Irina you are talking about shuba…thats different from vinegret