Cholovichyi Salat (чоловічий салат, men's beef salad)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A medium stockpot
• •A wide frying pan
• •A large mixing bowl
• •A sharp knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Simmer the beef

   Put the beef in a pot with the halved onion, bay leaf, peppercorns, salt, and enough cold water to cover by two fingers. Bring it up slowly, skim the grey foam as it rises, then keep it at a gentle bubble until a fork slides in and the fibres give way without a fight. Cool the beef in its broth so it stays juicy.

   Leftover boiled or roasted beef works beautifully here. If it is already cooked, skip the simmering and slice it cold across the grain.
2. 2

   Fry the onions

   Warm the sunflower oil in a wide pan and add the sliced onions with a pinch of salt. Cook them slowly until they collapse into soft amber ribbons and the sharp onion smell turns sweet. You want sweetness and gloss, not dark crisp bits.

3. 3

   Season the beef

   Slice the cooled beef into short strips across the grain and put it in a large bowl. Add the warm fried onions with every drop of their oil, a spoonful of cucumber brine, and plenty of black pepper. Toss and let it sit while you cut the cucumbers.

   This is the step that decides the salad. Warm onion oil carries sweetness into the beef before the mayonnaise arrives; mix everything cold and the flavours sit beside each other instead of becoming one bowl.
4. 4

   Fold the salad

   Add the beans, cucumber strips, most of the dill, mustard if using, and garlic if you like it sharper. Spoon in the mayonnaise and fold gently until everything is glossy and held together. Aunt Nadia would say, mayonnaise until it holds, not until it swims.

5. 5

   Rest and serve

   Cover and chill for at least an hour, longer if you can. Taste it cold, because mayonnaise dulls salt and the cucumbers wake up as they sit. Add more brine if it needs brightness, more pepper if it has gone sleepy, and the last dill just before the bowl goes to the table.

Chef Tips

• •Use fermented cucumbers if you can, the cloudy-brine kind with dill and garlic. Vinegar pickles work, but they bring a sharper note, so add the brine slowly and taste.
• •Canned beans are welcome. Rinse them, drain them well, and let them sit in the bowl with the beef for a few minutes before the mayonnaise, so they take on the onion oil.
• •Mayonnaise goes in only after the onions have stopped being hot. Warm onions season the beef; hot mayonnaise turns greasy and sulky.
• •A spoonful of smetana stirred into the mayonnaise makes the salad a bit lighter and more modern. It is still your bowl.

Advance Preparation

• •The beef can be simmered up to 2 days ahead and kept in its broth in the fridge.
• •The salad is better after at least 1 hour of chilling and holds well overnight. Add the final dill just before serving.
• •If cooking beans from dried, soak them overnight and simmer until creamy inside but still whole.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 220g)