Russian Recipe Reviews

    1- Olivier Salad (Салат «Оливье» )

This is probably one of the most traditional of the Russian mayonnaise-type salads. Usually a combination of boiled potatoes and veggies with some kind of meat. I had a recipe for a vegetarian version from the UofT’s Slavic Department’s 2007 Maslenitsa celebration. The recipe produced quite a large amount of salad that lasted me about a week. One thing to keep in mind is not to use flavourful onions, I used Spanish onions and after a few bites I smelled like onion the rest of the day.

• 4-5 big potatoes
• 3-4 big carrots
• 4 Hard-boiled eggs
• 1 medium onions
• 2-3 medium pickles
• 1 can of peas
  1. Begin by heating two pots of water one large (potatoes and carrots) and one small (boiling eggs). Boil eggs for 10 minutes and prepare.
  2. Boil veggies for 20 minutes then put in fridge.
  3. Meanwhile chop onions, eggs and pickles.
  4. Dice potatoes and carrots.
  5. Mix all chopped veggies and can of peas with mayonnaise.

2 – Tasty Salad (Салат «Вкусный»)

This was another recipe from UofT’s Slavic Department. However the results were less than stellar. I am not the biggest fan of olives and after going back for a second serving the olive flavour overpowered all the other flavours. Also I am still unsure if this salad was the cause of my indigestion (possible bad crab sticks). Needless to say remains servings ended up in the trash.

• Canned corn 1 can
• Any olives 1 can, chopped
• Chopped crab sticks (imitation of crab meat) 1 package
• Cheese about 200 grams
• Very small croutons about 100-150 grams
• Mix everything with mayonnaise

3- Pelmeni (Пелмени)

Another very traditional Russian dish. Most Russians buy them frozen pre-made. I had some time, so I decided to make them from scratch. This recipe took me two tries to perfect. In fact the first attempt was a quite mushy disaster. Modifications I made the second time was to use more flour than the 2 cups (otherwise the dough sticks to the counter!). I also made the pelmeni smaller the second time, because they increase in size significantly when cooked. Finally I froze them on wax paper and then put them in containers so they didn’t stick to each other.

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup milk or water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1 medium onion
• salt and pepper, to taste

Mix beef and pork. Then add chopped onion,
salt, and pepper. To make mincemeat more tender and juicy, add a bit
of milk. Reserve.
Mix flour with eggs and milk, salt and oil until a soft dough forms.
Knead on floured surface until dough is elastic. Take some dough and
make a "sausage" (1 inch in diameter). Divide into pieces (1 inch
thick). Roll each piece so that they are 1/16 inch thick. Take a glass
or a cup and make 2 inch rounds. Fill each round with 1 teaspoon of
the mincemeat, fold into half−moons. Pinch edges together and connect
the opposite sides. Pelmeni can be frozen to be cooked later (you can
keep them in the freezer for a long time), or cooked immediately.
To cook pelmeni, boil in a lot of water, as they can stick to each
other. Salt the water rather heavily. Carefully drop pelmeni into
boiling water. Stir them from time to time and boil for 20 minutes.
Pelmeni are served with butter, sour cream, vinegar, or ketchup.

4- Borsch (Борщ)

This was definitely my favourite recipe so far. The recipe quantities below make 2 regular size pots of the soup. I tastes even better reheated for the second, third or more times. I think it is a must to serve it with sour cream. Although this traditionally more of a Ukrainian soup, it is still quite popular in Russia. 

• Shredded fresh cabbage 1 big plate
• 6 fresh diced potatoes
• 2 chopped onions
• 2-3 graded carrots
• 1 medium fresh graded beet
• 3-4 fresh peeled red tomatoes
• fresh dill
• 1-2 bullions (beef, chicken, or vegetable flavor)

1. Prepare all veggies (1 – 1 ½ hour).
2. Heat frying pan with oil
3. Once frying pan is hot, starting boiling water. Fill a big big pot  (or two normal pots) with water 3/4 full and bring it to boil.
4. After beets, onions and carrots have fried for 5 mins, add cabbage to boiling water
5. After 10 mins of frying add tomatoes and dill, fry until it is all golden brown. At the same time at bullion and potatoes
6. After 5-7 minutes adding fried veggies to boiling water.
7. Stir and let it boil for another 4-5 min.
8. Turn the stove off. Cover it with a lid and let it sit for 15 min.

The next recipes I will be covering include: branching out to Armenian cooking, desserts, and some comments on buying fish and meat in Russia.

October Outing

On a chilly October morning I set out for my first solo trip to the centre of Moscow. It takes about 25 mins on the bus from Reutov to the Novogireevo metro station and then another 25 to the Teatralnaya station. The grandeur and cleanliness of the metro stations lived up to expectations – you feel like you are travelling through art museums!

Despite the crisp weather there was plenty of tourists in line to Lenin’s mausoleum. I waited about 30 minutes to get to security. One thing important thing to note is that they don’t allow any large bags or photographic devices (including camera phones) through security, so you have to pay for the privilege of checking your bags (and the bigger the object the more the more you have to pay). 

Before seeing Lenin himself you pass by the heroes of the revolution and heroes of the Soviet Union buried in the Kremlin walls. Unfortunately you only get to see Lenin for about one minute. The sullen guards hurry you through the experience. If I didn’t know that this was his actual body, I would have guessed it was a sculpture from a wax museum! Definitely an experience not to missed when visiting Moscow (and even better because it’s free)

I spent the next half an hour warming up by window shopping in GUM (literally translated: central universal store, figurative translation: universally expensive stores). Amidst the stunning architecture of the building you kind find some of the most expensive designer stores, cute cafés and ice cream stands (Russians are a people after my own heart – they eat ice cream year round!)

After admiring architecture inside, I went on a walkabout in the neighborhood of Red Square admiring the architecture of the former KGB headquarters, the Russian Parliament, the Bolshoi (sadly under construction until the end of 2011), statues of Karl Marx and Anton Chekov.

The afternoon was capped off by returning to Alexander Gardens and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to watch the hourly changing of the guard. If you want a lesson in perfect drill and dressing this is definitely the spot to check out.

Stay tuned, up next: Russian Recipe Reviews

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Bemused by Bureaucracy

Having been in the country now for about a month, I thought I’d comment on the worst part of living abroad: bureaucracy. After coming to Spain several times I’m used to the fact that not everywhere is efficiency and rapidity so highly valued as it is in North America. In Spain quite often there is an attitude of ‘mañana, mañana’ (it’ll get done tomorrow). But this summer is the first time I’ve been truly frustrated and inconvenienced by foreign bureaucracy.

Because of my EU citizenship working in Spain is relatively easy. Line up and take a number to get your social insurance number. Sign five copies of your contract (all of which are in Spanish and none of which are for you to keep). And voila! You are employed.

Russia has been a bit more tedious. Even to visit Russia as a tourist you need a visa, so the procedure for getting a working visa is a bit more complicated…I now take the time to share my full visa saga.

April 17 : Hired by English school in Russia

April 20: photocopies of passport and other paperwork sent to English school in Russia for an application for an invitation from the Russian government.

May 20: completed HIV test (a requirement for anyone staying in the country for more than three months)

End of July: projected date of arrival in Canada of the government invitation

August 19 : Invitation actually arrives in Canada, but is not located until August 25th

August 29: Paperwork including: invitation, HIV test, application form, bank draft, passport photos and letter of intent arrive in Russian Consulate in Toronto

September 1: Informed that the HIV test is 10 days out of date and must be redone

September 1 to 5: arguing with Russian officials about the impossibility of redoing the test given I’m in Europe and asking for leniency

September  8: Paperwork returned with no visa

September 12 : Reapplication for a visa under 3 months at Russian Embassy

September 17: Visa issued

September 25: Finally arrived in Russia

Now that I am settled I am getting requests from friends about when they can come and visit. I just cringe when they ask “How can I get a Russian visa?” Even now that I’m here I still don’t fully understand the process!

Up next on Ramblings from Russia: October Outing

Sauntering in the Centre of Moscow

   For my first taste of Russian sightseeing I had a bilingual (Russian-English) tour of the area around Red Square. One of the Russian English teachers took me to see the centre at night. She insisted I be in every photo. Red Square was as impressive as I expected, although St. Basil’s Cathedral turned out to be smaller than expected. But I wasn’t disappointed the colours and architecture of the cathedral make it look like something out of a fairy tale.

Lenin’s body is still open to viewing in the mausoleum, despite all the discussion  about burying him. All of the buildings were closed for the day, so I will have to go back to see Lenin ‘in the flesh’. The Kremlin tour, the museum in St Basil’s Cathedral and the National History Museum are all on my to do list for my next daytime trip to the centre.

Also not to be missed is the Russian parliament, the Bolshoi theatre (currently under construction) and big flashing Gazprom sign. My guide referred to it as one of other bodies of power.

Moscow is much more beautiful at night than during the day. All the buildings are lit up and signs flashing at you in Cyrillic. And there are barely any tourists!

Stay tuned for next week’s edition of Ramblings from Russia titled: Bemused by Bureaucracy

 

Reactions to Russia

I’m finally here! After a couple of months of finagling with visa application I finally arrived Russia.  I have been studying Russian language for the last four years and I’m finally making my first trip to Russia…initially it was very surreal.

All the signs were in Cyrillic and nobody was speaking English. I had a bit of time in the airport to let this feeling sink in, as my baggage was delayed three hours coming from Helsinki. I was able to watch the rich Russians arriving with their Louis Vuitton bags on a flight from Paris (the ‘new Russians’ we learned about in university). I also saw more fencing bags then I had ever seen before outside of a tournament.

After finally getting my baggage and getting through customs and passport control (not the quickest or most friendly experience), I was greeted by the academic director of my school and another teacher. Then we drove to Reutov, the town I will be calling home for the next ten months.  As we drove along the MKAD (Moscow ring road) I was shocked by all the neon lights (it was like being in Orlando again). I think the Russians were making up for 60 years of communism by over-advertising! Many of the signs were advertising chain stores that exist in North America, but with Cyrillic script!

After about 40 minutes we arrived in Reutov. At first glance it is a small town like any other, with a police station, grocery stores and pharmacies…except that it is in Russia!

I will be writing from Russia for the next ten months, as my visa is entry only and my teaching contract goes until the end of July 2010. So keep following my weekly ramblings from Russia.