In some way similar to particularly indigenous recipes, such as pico de gallo in Latin American countries, or French bean cassoulets, rosolje is beloved by Estonians. Although recipes may vary a little from home to home, the main ingredients remain basically the same. Some may use only sour cream in the dressing, some prefer canned beets instead of fresh and roasted, some have an aversion to herring and vegetarians prefer leaving out the roast beef, (or pork or ham).
This recipe, distilled from many years of eating and cooking, is my favourite combination of ingredients. Some prefer the cut cubes very small, but I prefer them on the slightly larger side, to really taste each component. Authentic and delicious!
Serves 8-10 people (or a family for a few days)
Recipe
- 6 large white potatoes, (or 4 bruisers!), washed and boiled with skins on until soft but not mushy, then cooled, peeled and cut into small cubes, @ ¼ – 3/8 inch
- 6 large beets, washed and wrapped in foil, skins on, roasted @ 400° until soft, (approx. 1 – 1 ½ hours, depending on size of the beets), cooled, peeled and cut into small cubes, @ ¼ – 3/8 inch
- 2 Tbs. sweet onion, finely minced (more if you don't mind the taste of raw onion)
- 6 – 10 dill pickles, depending on size, cubed @ 1/4 – 3/8 inch (not sweet or very garlicky)
- 6 apples, peeled, cored and cut into small cubes, @ ¼ – 3/8 inch (I prefer Cortlandt, Red Delicious, or Gala, but others will do.)
- 8 -10 pieces of 1-1.5 inch squares of herring filets, in brine or a light vinegar or wine marinade, minced to create 1/3 cup (We recently found Feature Foods herring at Sobey's and Loblaws in Canada, and regularly used Vita in the USA)
- ½ – 2/3 cup roast beef, cut into small cubes @ ¼ – 3/8 inch
- Dressing: Equal amounts of mayonnaise and sour cream, approx. 1 cup of each, more if needed. 2 Tbs. Dijon mustard, salt and pepper, 1 – 2 Tbs. white vinegar, 1 – 2 Tbs. sugar
- Garnish (optional): hard boiled eggs sliced or diced
Method of preparation
Place all salad ingredients into a very large mixing bowl. Prepare dressing in a separate bowl, and scoop onto the other ingredients. Using a rubber spatula, a wooden spoon or your hands, gently combine the salad, making sure to keep the potatoes as intact as possible. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for a couple of hours or more, until ready to serve.
Tips: When I prepared this for large parties, (needing more potatoes, etc.), getting through the cutting stage often took several hours. Having to cool the potatoes and beets in a bowl in the snow, and just being neat with everything when cutting, took time. Preparing the dressing at the end always seemed like a chore, so I learned to mix that when the potatoes were boiling. I cut while sitting, with a ‘vegetable waste’ container at my side, and cut the herring on a separate “cooking plate”, to keep from having to scrub the cutting board unnecessarily. Into the bowl, most often, I cut the onion first, then added the potatoes, beets, pickles, apples and herring and meat at the end. Salting the potatoes can help, but since the herring itself can be quite salty, a light hand is a good idea. We often roasted a lovely little piece of beef just for the occasion, but once bought roast beef from the supermarket deli department. It was a little too rare, so placing it into the oven at 350°, with a watchful eye until it was done, served the purpose. Doggie loved the leftover real beef roast, whenever.
