Cauliflower Tomato Salad

Cauliflower and tomatoes complement each other beautifully in this refreshing salad. We made this often as I was growing up and I still love to serve it, especially with seafood. It is a great variation from coleslaw. The cauliflower is crunchy and grating it makes it almost fluffy. Tomatoes, garlic and herbs are then added and dressed with mayo and sour cream.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• ½ cauliflower head
• 1 tomato
• 1 tsp dill, parsley, chives, each
• ¼ tsp salt
• pepper
• 1 tiny garlic clove
• 3-4 Tablespoons mayo and sour cream, each

Instructions

Grate the cauliflower on the large holes of a box grater.
Seed and chop the tomato.
Add the rest of the ingredients and mix to combine.

Source:

http://www.olgasflavorfactory.com/ontheside/salads/cauliflower-tomato-salad/

Russian Meatball Soup – Суп с Фрикадельками

It seems every cultures loves their meatballs in many ways.  A great option is to serve it in soup. My mother made this soup quite often and I make it for my own family now. This soup is light and healthy, but absolutely delicious.

This is definitely a quick dinner option, since there is very little prep work and the cooking time is fairly short. The ingredients are very simple pantry staples, but marry together to create an incredibly tasty soup. I really prefer using chicken for the meatballs, with their clean flavor and such moist, plump and succulent texture. You will feel light and fresh when sipping each pleasing spoonful, not only from it’s healthy goodness but also because you’ll still have some energy left, instead of spending it all on the cooking.

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 8-10 cups water
• 2 potatoes, diced into ½ inch pieces
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 1 carrot, shredded on large holes of box grater
• ½ of a large onion, finely diced
• salt, pepper
• 3-4 Tablespoons rice
• 3-5 peppercorns
• 1-2 bay leaves
• fresh chives, parsely, dill, minced, for garnishing

For the meatballs:

• 1 lb ground chicken
• 1 slice bread, or 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
• ¼ -1/3 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 egg
• ¼-1/2 of an onion, grated on the finest setting on the box grater, to form a pulp

Instructions

Bring the water to a boil.
Add the bay leaves, peppercorns and season the water to taste with salt.
Add the potatoes, reduce the heat to medium low.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a nonstick skillet and add the onions. Season with ¼-1/3 teaspoon salt.
Cover and cook on medium until soft and translucent, about 3-5 minutes.
Add the carrots, season with more salt, cover and cook for another 2-4 minutes. Add to the soup.
Pour the milk over the breadcrumbs and set it aside for about 5 minutes, until bread has been absorbed by the milk and is soft.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the meatball mixture and mix until well combined.
Add the rice to the soup.
Using moistened hands, form the ground meat mixture into approximately ½ Tablespoon meatballs and drop into simmering soup.
Allow to cook until the rice and meatballs have completely cooked through, 10-15 minutes.
Garnish with the fresh herbs. You can also add freshly minced herbs to the meatballs.

Source:

http://www.olgasflavorfactory.com/soups/russian-meatball-soup/

Chicken Kotleti (Russian Meatballs) – Куриные Котлеты

All Russian children grow up with their mom’s kotleti, just like Italians grow up with meatballs. Kotleti translate as meat “cutlets”, and are small, individual meatball-type patties. Anytime I make these for dinner, I am guaranteed a huge smile from my husband and always an enthusiastic kiss too. He’s so easy to please:).

Most of the time, kotleti are made with pork or beef, but I actually prefer chicken. I think the meat is much more tender and light. Adding fresh, toasted breadcrumbs gives the meat a porous, tender texture. I have also found that grating the onion on the smallest holes of a box grater incorporates the onion really well into the meat and using only a small amount will give just enough flavor without giving you kotleti aftertaste. Not a good thing:) For this reason also, I always omit garlic.

Kotleti are also on my list for company dinners too. I love watching guests happily gobbling up the plate of tender chicken patties. Since most Slavic people grew up eating them, no one ever gets too excited when they see them on the table. They’re just a seemingly boring and uninteresting entree, but when they start eating them, they can’t stop raving about how delicious they are and I rarely have any leftovers. I think it’s the ground chicken and  the fact that they are SO juicy and tender. I hope you love these as much as we do.

Serves: 20-22 small, 16 large kotleti

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground chicken
• ¾ - 1 cup panko bread crumbs or 2 slices of bread
• ⅓ - ½ cup milk
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 1 egg
• 1 small onion, grated
• ½ cup flour, for dredging

Instructions

If you're using bread, toast the bread and pulse in the food processor or use a box grater. Place the breadcrumbs or the panko breadcrumbs in a bowl and top with milk.The milk should just cover the bread. You may not need all the milk, depending on the size of your bread.
Let it stand for a few minutes, just until the milk is absorbed by the bread.
Combine all the ingredients, except the flour, in a bowl.
The meat mixture should be very tender. It is much softer in consistency than regular meatloaf mixture.
With moistened hands, shape into oval patties. Dredge in flour.
In a nonstick skillet, heat 1 - 1½ Tablespoons of oil and add the kotleti to the skillet.
Cover and cook until golden on both sides, about 5 minutes on the first side and 3 minutes on the second side.
Wipe out the skillet with a paper towel before cooking the next batch.

Make Ahead:

To make ahead, you can either make the meat mixture ahead of time and refrigerate or freeze until you're ready to cook or cook the kotleti and reheat later. When you re-heat the kotleti, add just enough water to a skillet or a small pot and cook, covered, on low heat. This will keep the kotleti moist even as leftovers.

Source:

http://www.olgasflavorfactory.com/main-course/chicken-kotleti/

Russian Salad “Olivie” – Салат “Оливье”

If I had to name the most traditional Russian dish, it would be the “Olivie” salad. It used to be made for holidays, parties and other special occasions. New Year’s Eve is the biggest holiday of all, and “Olivie” would be on almost all the tables as the clock would strike midnight.

The ingredients are quite common and are pantry staples for most. It resembles a potato salad, of sorts, with the addition of other cooked vegetables and meat. In the original salad, cooked wild meat was used, but now most people use bologna or some other type of sausage meat. This is as traditional as the Thanksgiving turkey. One of the best advantages of making a big batch of “Olivie” is the leftovers the next day. All the components of the salad mingle and meld to create a hearty, comforting salad.

Serves: 10-12 cups

Ingredients

• 3 small, medium potatoes
• 4 medium carrots
• 8 eggs
• 1 lb bologna
• 8 small pickles
• 1-2 small cucumbers
• 1 can (14-15 oz) peas
• 1 - ½ cups mayonnaise
• 1 small onion, optional
• fresh chives, optional

Instructions

Cook the potatoes with the carrots in a medium pot just until tender, 20-30 min, depending on the size of the vegetables. Cook the vegetables in their skins. Do not overcook.
Hardboil the eggs.
Drain the peas well.
Cut the potatoes, carrots, eggs, pickles and cucumbers, if using, into small ¼ inch dice.
Mince the onions finely, if using. (I don't like raw onions, so I never put them in. Another option is to use chives or green onions.)
Mix all the the ingredients with the mayonnaise.

Make Ahead:

Just like most potato salads, "Olivie" is made ahead of time. Sometimes, I chop all the ingredients and store them in the refrigerator and then add the mayonnaise a few hours before serving. This way, you will have your prep done a few days before the event.

Source:

http://www.olgasflavorfactory.com/ontheside/salads/russian-salad-olivie/

Beef Goulash – Гуляш из Говядины

Most cultures make different versions of beef stew, and I can understand why it’s such a favorite. There’s something so comforting about taking a bite of succulent, tender chunks of beef. There’s nothing more Russian than adding onions and carrots to everything, and the addition of garlic and tomato paste brings a depth of amazing flavor. The delicate sauce is perfect to pour over mashed potatoes or pasta. While the goulash is simmering merrily on the stove filling your home with it’s enticing aroma, you’ll have plenty of time to make a side dish and salad, or even dessert. Or just put your feet up and relax with a good book.

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 2 lbs beef, chuck
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2-3 carrots, peeled and shredded
• 1 garlic clove
• ½ - 1 Tablespoon of tomato paste
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 3 cups broth, chicken or beef or water
• 1 dry bay leaf
• 1½ teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon chili powder, optional
• oil, salt, pepper

Instructions

Cut the meat into ½ inch cubes. Heat up 1½ Tablespoons of oil in a skillet over high heat. When the skillet is very hot, add the beef in a single layer. You will need to do this in batches. Brown all over. This will give tremendous flavor to the goulash.
Add onions to the meat, season with salt, cover and cook on medium heat until softened.
Add carrots, season with salt and pepper, then cover and cook on medium heat until softened.
Add tomato paste, garlic, paprika and chili powder. Cook for about a minute and then add the flour. Stir until completely incorporated into the meat and vegetables.
Add water or broth a little bit at a time, scraping the botom of the skillet and stirring so that there are no lumps. Add the rest of the liquid and bay leaf.
Cover and cook on low heat for about 1½ hours, until meat is fork-tender. Season with salt and pepper, if needed.

Source:

http://www.olgasflavorfactory.com/main-course/beef-goulash/

Pulled Pork and Three Ways To Use It

These days, if you ask someone how they’re doing, most of them will answer “I’m SO busy!” Yep, we live in a very fast paced world, packed to the brim with responsibilities, to-do lists, etc. In the midst of our active day to day life, we still have to feed our families and sometimes the thought of a home-cooked meal is a little daunting.

You have to be smart with your time. As a full time working wife, I know what it’s like to come home from work and not be in the mood to roll up my sleeves and transform into a Martha Stewart clone. On those days, I try to pick REALLY easy meals that I can make within half an hour or so, or better yet, cook up ahead of time and simply reheat or tweak a bit.

This is one of those dishes that is really, really easy to make in the first place and the best part is that you can create 3 different meals out of it with just as little effort. Cook up the meat ahead of time and you’ll have 3 different dinner options that you can whip up in no time. Instead of being overwhelmed and frazzled, you can sit down to dinner with the family with a smile. Next time someone asks you how you’re doing, instead of the typical reply of “BUSY”, you can respond with “Pleasantly productive, thank you.”

Serves: 6-7 cups Pulled Pork meat

Ingredients

• 5 lbs boneless pork shoulder also called Boston Butt
• 1 onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 3-5 peppercorns
• 1-2 dry bay leaves
• ½ -1 teaspoon ground coriander
• Juice from 1 lemon
• salt
• water, about 4 cups

Instructions

Cut the pork into 1½ inch chunks.
Quarter the onion, crush the garlic cloves and place the pork, onion, garlic cloves, lemon juice, bay leaf, pepper corns, coriander into a large pot.
Pour in the water. It should barely cover the meat. Cover the pot with a lid. Bring to a boil. Season with salt. Cook for 1½ - 2 hours on low heat, keeping the water simmering until the pork is fork tender.
Stain out all the liquid and save. Discard the bay leaves, peppercorns, cooked onion and garlic. (Although the onion and garlic will be really disintegrated, but if you find any big chunks, just toss them.)
Return the liquid to the pot. Bring to a boil. Keep it boiling on high heat, with the lid off, until it reduces by half and becomes thick and almost syrupy.
Toss the meat in the reduced liquid.
Preheat the oven to a broil. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the meat on the baking sheet.
Broil the meat for 3-5 minutes, just until the edges are browned.
First up - Pulled Pork Sandwich.
You can make a whole bunch of these sandwiches all week for lunch like I do, or serve them for dinner. You can even add some barbecue sauce to the meat if you'd like.
For the pulled pork sandwich, spread mayo on the bread. Top one of the sides of the bread with a slice of cheese (whatever suits your fancy) and pickles. Place about ¼ cup of pulled pork on top of the other slices of bread. Assemble the sandwich.
You can also use the meat in many other recipes, such as Savory Meat Crepes or Navy Style Macaroni.

Source:

http://www.olgasflavorfactory.com/main-course/pulled-pork-and-three-ways-to-use-it/

Makaroni Po Flotski – Macaroni Navy Style (Макароны По-Флотски)

Makaroni Po Flotski has been part of the Russian kitchen since the age-old Soviet years. It is said that men in the Navy would prepare this dish quite often, hence the name. Out at sea, there weren’t many options or variety in the available ingredients, so they used what what they had, canned meat and pasta. It’s a dinner on the fly option, especially since you use meat that has been cooked ahead of time. The simple flavors and textures of this dish is something that the whole family will enjoy. The juicy and flavorful meat is paired with caramelized onions and a simple sauce and tossed with elbows.

Ingredients

• 1 pound elbows pasta
• 1 cup cooked, pulled pork
• 1-2 onions minced
• 1/2 Tablespoon butter
• salt, pepper
• 1/3-1/2 cup broth
• fresh parsley minced

Instructions

Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook 1 pound of elbows pasta according to the package instructions or however you like them.
Place 1 cup of cooked pulled pork in a food processor. Pulse until the meat is nicely ground. You don't want it to be a puree, but it should definitely be on the smaller size.
In a nonstick skillet, melt the butter.Add the minced onion, season with salt and cook on medium heat until the onions are tender and slightly golden in color.
Add the ground cooked meat to the skillet. Increase the heat to medium high heat and continue cooking until the edges of the pork are golden. The meat should still be tender for the most part, with nicely brown bits here and there.
Add the flour and stir it well into the meat mixture until the flour is completely incorporated.
Add the broth and cook for another 3-5 minutes.
Add the meat to the pasta. Mix and garnish with fresh herbs.


Source:

http://www.olgasflavorfactory.com/main-course/makaroni-po-flotski-macaroni-navy-style/