Russian dressing is a piquant American

salad dressing A salad dressing is a sauce for salads, used on virtually all leafy salads. Dressings may also be used in preparing salads of beans (e.g., three bean salad), noodle or pasta salads and antipasti, and forms of potato salad. A dressing may even ...

consisting of

mayonnaise Mayonnaise (), colloquially referred to as "mayo" (), is a thick, creamy sauce with a rich and tangy taste that is commonly used on sandwiches, hamburgers, Salad#Bound salads, bound salads, and French fries. It also forms the base for various o ...

ketchup Ketchup or catsup is a table condiment with a sweet and sour flavor. "Ketchup" now typically refers to tomato ketchup, although early recipes for different varieties contained mushrooms, oysters, mussels, egg whites, grapes, or walnuts, amon ...

, complemented with such additional ingredients as

horseradish Horseradish (''Armoracia rusticana'', syn. ''Cochlearia armoracia'') is a perennial plant of the family Brassicaceae (which also includes Mustard plant, mustard, wasabi, broccoli, cabbage, and radish). It is a root vegetable, cultivated and us ...

, pimentos,

chives Chives, scientific name ''Allium schoenoprasum'', is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae. A perennial plant, ''A. schoenoprasum'' is widespread in nature across much of Eurasia and North America. It is the only spe ...

, mustard, and

spice In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, Bark (botany), bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of pl ...

History

Russian dressing is mentioned as early as 1900 in U.S. sources. It is also documented in a 1910 catering book as an alternative to

vinaigrette Vinaigrette ( , ) is made by mixing an edible oil with a mild acid such as vinegar (acetic acid) or lemon juice ( citric acid). The mixture can be enhanced with salt, herbs and/or spices. It is used most commonly as a salad dressing, but can ...

for dressing

tomato The tomato (, ), ''Solanum lycopersicum'', is a plant whose fruit is an edible Berry (botany), berry that is eaten as a vegetable. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family that includes tobacco, potato, and chili peppers. It originate ...

es or

asparagus Asparagus (''Asparagus officinalis'') is a perennial flowering plant species in the genus ''Asparagus (genus), Asparagus'' native to Eurasia. Widely cultivated as a vegetable crop, its young shoots are used as a spring vegetable. Description ...

. A 1913 cookbook has a recipe which is a vinaigrette with paprika and mustard. A mayonnaise-based recipe is documented in 1914. The condiment came to be called "Russian" since the original recipe included

caviar Caviar or caviare is a food consisting of salt-cured roe of the family Acipenseridae. Caviar is considered a delicacy and is eaten as a garnish or spread. Traditionally, the term caviar refers only to roe from wild sturgeon in the Caspi ...

, a staple of Russian cuisine. Local historians claim that the mayonnaise-based version was invented in

Nashua, New Hampshire Nashua () is a city in southern New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 91,322, the second-largest in northern New England after nearby Manchester, New Hampshire, Manchester. It is on ...

, by James E. Colburn in the 1910s. A 1927 biographical article calls him "the originator and first producer of that delectable condiment known as Russian salad dressing". Colburn had been selling "Colburn's Mayonnaise salad dressing" at his store since at least 1910. By 1914, Colburn's company was manufacturing it, and distributing it to retailers and hotels. He earned enough from its sale to retire in 1924.

Preparation

Typically piquant, it is today characteristically made of a blend of

and

complemented with such additional ingredients as

, pimentos,

, mustard, and

Uses

Besides being used as a salad dressing, Russian dressing is used as a spread for Reuben sandwiches.

Related sauces

In the United States, Russian dressing has largely been supplanted by Thousand Island dressing, which is sweeter and less spicy than Russian.John Holl, "America was sweet on its spicy Russian dressing — until Thousand Island, that is", ''Washington Post'
22 December 2014
Other combinations of mayonnaise and ketchup, but without the spicy ingredients, are known as fry sauce or other names, and typically served with

French fries French fries, or simply fries, also known as chips, and finger chips (Indian English), are '' batonnet'' or '' julienne''-cut deep-fried potatoes of disputed origin. They are prepared by cutting potatoes into even strips, drying them, and f ...

or tostones. In Australia, sauce made from mayonnaise and ketchup is called Cocktail Sauce and is used to dress prawns/shrimp in the appetiser known as prawn cocktail.

Tartar sauce Tartar sauce (; often spelled tartare sauce in the UK, Ireland, and Commonwealth countries) is a condiment made of mayonnaise, chopped gherkins or relish, capers, and herbs such as tarragon and dill. Tartar sauce can also be enhanced with ot ...

has the piquant ingredients of Russian dressing, without the ketchup. It is typically served with fried fish. Marie Rose sauce is similar to Russian dressing, but with different piquant ingredients. It is typically served with seafood. A variant known as red Russian dressing is very much like Catalina or French dressing. In

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, a similar salad dressing is called "American dressing".; sometimes, in Italy it's also called a "Burger Sauce" or "Burger Dressing"

References

External links

Historical definitions and recipes for Russian dressing
{{portal bar, Food 1900 introductions American condiments Horseradish (condiment) Ketchup Mayonnaise Salad dressings Spreads (food)