Annals of culinary history: the famed Olivier Salad

The original version of Salad Olivier (Салат Оливье) was invented in the 1860s by Belgian Lucien Olivier, the chef of the Hermitage, one of Moscow's most celebrated restaurants. Olivier's salad quickly became immensely popular with Hermitage regulars, and became the restaurant's signature dish. It is known that the salad contained grouse, veal tongue, caviar, lettuce, crayfish tails, capers, and smoked duck, but the exact recipe — particularly that of the dressing — was a jealously guarded secret.

At the turn of the 20th century, one of Olivier's sous-chefs, Ivan Ivanov, attempted to steal the recipe. While preparing the dressing one evening in solitude, as was his custom, Olivier was suddenly called away on some emergency. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Ivanov sneaked into Olivier's private kitchen and observed his mise en place, which allowed him to make reasonable assumptions about the recipe of Olivier's famed dressing. Ivanov then left Olivier's employ and went to work as a chef for Moskva, a somewhat inferior restaurant, where he began to serve a suspiciously similar salad under the name "Capital Salad," (Столичный, "Stolichny").

It was reported by the gourmands of the time, however, that the dressing on the Stolichny salad was of a lower quality than Olivier's, meaning that it was missing some ingredient or other present in the original.

CULINARY ESPIONAGE!

This post adapted from Wikipedia.

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Coda, from an article on "Russian Salad" from the webpage of The School of Russian and Asian Studies:

Салат «Оливье» was originally called «Майонез из дичи», “Game Bird Mayonnaise”. It was made with a series of gourmet ingredients including black caviar and capers, layered together with steamed game hen, and bound in layers of jellied broth. Boiled crayfish tails and pieces of tongue were arranged around the edges of the dish and it was served covered with a small amount of fresh Provencal Sauce made from olive oil, egg yolks, French vinegar, mustard, and spices. A potato skin with gherkins and slices of boiled eggs decorated the center of the dish. 

However, most Russian customers, Olivier noticed, would immediately mix the layers and garnish together and eat the mush this created with a spoon. Shocked, but willing to accommodate, the enterprising chef started serving his salad mixed together and bound in sauce rather than covered in it. This is also when the name changed to Салат «Оливье».

Cross posted to The Wonder Reflex.