December 30, 2025

Eager for Olivier


Eager for Olivier
Delicious. Evgenija Gorenkova: Shutterstock, Fotodom

A traditional Russian New Year’s feast is not complete without Olivier salad. Although prices on many ingredients are down this season, it cost's 2.3% more to prepare Olivier this year compared with 2024.

A survey conducted by Russian state media found that 71% of those polled said they will include the salad on their New Year’s table. The remaining 29% will prepare a different variety, either because they dislike the dish or because they wish to make a healthier, greener option. 

Olivier's main components typically include potatoes, carrots, pickles, green peas, eggs, onion, meat (sausage or chicken), and heaps of mayonnaise. Legend has it that a nineteenth century French chef in Moscow created the salad, which was then named after him. 

In Soviet times, the dish spread throughout the USSR, and it holds on as a cornerstone of New Year’s feasts. It is also popular in Iran.

The frenzy around the salad is so intense that an Olivier Index was created in 2009 to provide insight into the Russian economy and consumer purchasing power (similar to the United States' Big Mac Index). 

Komsomolskaya Pravda has tracked the “Olivier Index” over the last five years. Their calculations take into account a reasonable portion of Olivier for a family of four, amounting to a healthy 2.2 kg. The decrease in vegetable prices is credited to a better harvest, while the cost of pickles, mayonnaise, and sausage have all increased from last year. 

Overall, the price for a portion for four has increased by 2.3% and amounts to R581 ($7.35), well below the current national inflation rate of 5.37%.  

Olivier is not the only holiday food whose prices garner Russians' attention. They can also expect to pay more for caviar this season, despite a major increase in production.

You Might Also Like

Party Like It's 1945
  • December 21, 2025

Party Like It's 1945

Moscow's Museum of Victory has created a temporary exhibition highlighting how the Russians of the Second World War celebrated New Year.
An Essential Discount
  • September 21, 2025

An Essential Discount

The Russian State Duma is considering a bill that would limit the markup on some "essential" foods.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

The Little Humpbacked Horse
November 03, 2014

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

How Russia Got That Way
September 20, 2025

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.

Driving Down Russia's Spine
June 01, 2016

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

Jews in Service to the Tsar
October 09, 2011

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

Fish
February 01, 2010

Fish

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

Life Stories
September 01, 2009

Life Stories

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas
October 01, 2013

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.

 

About Us

Russian Life is the 31-year-old publication of an award-winning publishing house that also creates books, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955