Russian Herring Under a Fur Coat Salad (Shuba Salad)

Step 1

In one pot, place beets in boiling water (enough water to cover the beets). Boil 1 hour, or until soft when pierced with a knife. The cooking time varies depending on your beets. Some will cook sooner than others, so test all of them. When cooked, remove from boiling water and let cool to room temperature. Peel the cooked beets (I use gloves for this sometimes to prevent from your hands getting stained). Use a cheese grater, grate into a bowl. In a separate pot, boil whole potatoes and carrots about 25-35 minutes, or until smooth when pierced with a knife. Don’t overcook. When cooked, remove from boiling water and let cool to room temperature. Peel the cooked potatoes and carrots. It’s easiest to peel carrots by putting a slit down the length of the carrot and peeling in a circle around the carrot. Grate into separate bowls.Place 4 eggs in another pot of salted cold water and bring them to a boil. Once the water is boiling, cook for 10 minutes. When timer is done, place eggs in a ice bath. Let eggs cool to room temperature. Peel the eggs. Cut in half.While veggies cook, take each herring filet and cut into 4 strips, then cut into 1/4 in cubes. Add into a bowl. Chop the onion as well and add to the same bowl. Finely chop 2 tbsp fresh dill, add to bowl and mix well. Set aside until ready to layer your salad.

Step 2

Using a springform without the bottom part, place it on top of a plate that is slightly larger than the springform.Add the grated potatoes, spreading evenly to the edges, but don’t press down too hard.Add in the herring, onion and dill mixture. Using the spoon spread it to the edges of the springform.Add the grated carrots, spoon on half of the mayo, spreading evenly on top.Add the grated beets, spoon on the other half of the mayo, spreading evenly on top.Carefully grate the egg white part of the hard boiled eggs over the mayo layer, spreading evenly as you grate. Then grate in the egg yolk, you might have some eggs leftover, which is fine.Garnish with fresh dill. Refrigerate for at least 4-6 hours or over night to chill the salad before serving. Release and remove the springform. When serving, cut like you would cut a cake and enjoy. Goes well with a cold beer.