Umami Olivier Salad

The uber popular retro side dish, lovingly known as Russian Salad amongst our parents generation gets a reimagined twist from my kitchen. I’m fully aware that trying to upgrade or change the recipes of classics, exposes me to a lot of strong feelings and opinions but in this case I feel I can get away with it! As the original revolves around limited ingredients and relies mostly on the creamy mouthfeel of mayonnaise as the signature feature - with bougie radishes, herbs, spices and the tangy lightness from yoghurt I believe my version can get everyone on board! The additions and twists in the dressing and fixings make the dish quite sophisticated in looks and taste so I highly recommend to seek out the right ingredients as they will become a valuable addition to your pantry.

Feel free to substitute half quantity of potatoes with short pasta like macaroni or elbows as a spin-off and use fresh lima or fava beans instead of peas. Its an easy side dish for summer garden parties that can be made ahead and kept refrigerated - just do the garnishes at the very end! Refer the note below for how to make it Vegan or Dairy-free

Ingredients (serves 4-6 as a side)

4 Medium Yukon Gold Potatoes (1 lb or 454g), boiled (until well cooked but not smooshy) and diced into 1” cubes
100g Sweet Green Peas, Steamed
1/2 tsp Salt

Dressing
110g Plain Whole Milk Greek Style Yoghurt
3 tbsp or 40g Kewpie Mayonnaise (highly recommend seeking out this Japanese style Mayo, if not then regular Mayo is fine too)
1.5 tbsp Lemon Juice (juice from a large lemon)
2 tbsp Grated Parmesan (pre-grated is totally fine)
2 Scallions, finely chopped
1 tsp Ground Coriander Seeds
1 tsp Dried Tarragon or Basil (whichever is available but strongly recommend Tarragon)
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 crushed White Pepper - substitute with Black Pepper if you don’t have white on hand
1/2 tsp Dried Mint (optional but highly recommended)

Radish Prep
5-6 French Breakfast Radish, sliced (substitute with regular breakfast radish)
7-8 French Cornichons, diced (I use the one from Trader Joe’s)
75-80g Radish Greens (essentially the tops of french breakfast radishes), thoroughly cleaned and shredded (substitute with micro Arugula or baby arugula leaves)
15g Tarragon leaves, shredded (substitute with Sweet Basil, but not the same)
5g Mint Leaves, shredded
1-2 tbsp Lemon Zest (zest from a large lemon)
1.5 tsp Red Wine Vinegar (Sherry Vinegar or Cider vinegar works too)
1/2 tsp Maple Syrup or Agave
1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 tsp Crushed White Pepper (increase/adjust to your preference) - substitute with Black Pepper if you don’t have white on hand

Garnish
1-2 tsp Nigella Seeds (if you can’t find nigella seeds then substitute with toasted and lightly crushed cumin seeds)

Directions
🥗 In a large bowl, combine potato and peas. Add 1/2 tap Salt and toss everything and keep it aside

🥗 Combine all Radish prep ingredients and let the flavors meld for 10-15 mins. Combine and whisk all dressing ingredients into a homogenous concoction.

🥗 Transfer dressing into the large bowl with seasoned potatoes and peas. Now transfer 3/4 qty of Radish Prep into the large bowl. Gently mix everything really well. Now transfer the salad onto a large lipped platter. Dot with remaining 1/4 qty radish prep, finish with nigella seeds. Enjoy!

*Note: To keep it Vegan, use dairy-free yoghurt and vegan mayo of your choice and instead of parmesan use the same quantity of nutritional yeast.