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Take celebratory feasts to a whole new level of awe with our herring under a fur coat recipe (seledka pod shuboi or shuba), and treat all your friends and family to one of Russia’s and the Balkans’ most decadent and flavorsome salads.
Herring Under a Fur Coat Recipe (Seledka pod Shuboi)
Few salads land on the dinner table with as much jaw-dropping presence as this Russian and Balkan classic. The saltiness of the herring, the earthy softness of the potatoes, the refreshing crunch of the root vegetables, and the earthy sweetness of the beets are just some of the many flavors packed into this beautifully colored and textured dish.
What is Seledka pod Shuboi / Herring Under a Fur Coat?
The English translation ‘herring under a fur coat’ is such a beautiful and apt name for this layered salad. It consists of a layer of diced herring, sat on a bed of potato, and layered with various vegetables, such as carrots and beetroot, bound with mayonnaise, and topped with crumbled boiled egg yolks.
Instantly recognizable for its composition and color, ‘seledka pod shuboi’ or also called ‘shuba’ is a hugely popular salad in Russian cuisine, commonly prepared for holidays such as Christmas.
The dish, in several variations, is also popular in the Balkans in the likes of Latvian cuisine and Lithuanian cuisine, in Eastern Europe in the likes of Belarusian cuisine, Ukrainian cuisine, and Moldovan cuisine, and even reaches Central Asia in the form of Kazakh cuisine.
Ingredients
To make herring under a fur coat salad, you’ll first need to assemble the following ingredients:
- Beets – 4 small beets
- Potatoes – 3 medium potatoes
- Carrots – 2 medium
- Herring (Seledka) – 400 grams (14.1 oz)
- Mayonnaise – 150 grams (5.3 oz or ~ 3/4 cup)
- Eggs – 4 medium eggs
- Red Onion – 1 small red onion
- Fresh Herbs – parsley for decoration
Step by Step Instructions
This recipe is quite easy to make. First, we’ll boil any raw veggies. And then we’ll grate and dice all the ingredients and create the layers of the seledka pod shuboi.
Part I – Boil and prep the vegetables
Step 1 – Put the potatoes and carrots in a pot with cold water and over medium-high heat bring to a boil. Boil the potatoes and carrots until they’re fully cooked, for about 20-25 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes. After they’re done, drain the water and set the potatoes and carrots aside to cool.
Step 2 – Put the eggs in a pot with cold water, bring to a boil, and boil for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, transfer the eggs to a bowl of cold water. Wait for them to cool for about 10 minutes and then peel them.
If using raw beetroot, boil the beetroots for about 30-40 minutes, depending on the size. In our recipe, we’re using pre-cooked beetroots.
Part II – Dice or grate all the ingredients as shown below.
Step 3 – Grate the pre-cooked beetroots.
Step 4 – Dice the herring.
Step 5 – Dice the onions and add them to the herring.
Step 6 – Mix the onion and the herring.
Step 7 – Finely chop the eggs, saving 2 egg yolks for later for decoration.
Step 8 – Grate the cooked and cooled carrots.
Step 9 – Grate the cooked and cooled potatoes.
Step 10 – Get all the bowls of grated and diced ingredients and prepare to assemble the layers. We’ll be using a cake ring to achieve a smooth finish but you can freehand assemble it as well.
Step 11 – Place the cake ring on a plate and put the first layer, the potatoes, and smooth it out with the back of a spoon.
Step 12 – Add the second layer – the herring and onion mix. The potatoes underneath will absorb any delicious juice coming from the herring and onion.
Step 13 – Add a thin layer of mayonnaise (about 2 tbsp of mayo).
Step 14 – Add the next layer, which will be the grated carrots.
Step 15 – Add a thin layer of mayonnaise (about 2 tbsp of mayo).
Step 16 – Add the next layer, which is the layer of chopped eggs.
Step 17 – Add a thin layer of mayonnaise (about 2 tbsp of mayo).
Step 18 – Add the next layer, which is the grated beets.
Step 19 – Add a final thin layer of mayonnaise (about 2-3 tbsp of mayo or the remaining mayo).
Step 20 – Now we’ll take the 2 cooked egg yolks we saved for decoration and crumble them over the seledka pod shuboi.
Step 21 – Decorate with some fresh parsley (either whole leaves or chopped parsley)
Step 22 – Carefully remove the cake ring, and the seledka pod shuboi is ready. However, ideally, you should refrigerate it for at least an hour so that the flavors meld and the shuba is served chilled!
Prepare for plenty of wide eyes and open mouths when you bring this majestic salad to the table. There is so much color and texture to this salad, gloriously assembled in an alluring composition of ringed layers.
This Russian, Balkans, and Eastern European favorite deserves to be the star of the show when it comes to filling plates at whatever gathering or celebration you have invited friends and family around for. Spoon yourself a generous helping, and enjoy surrounded by those you love!
Seledka pod Shuboi Recipe Card
Herring Under a Fur Coat
Ingredients
- 4 small beets, pre-cooked
- 3 medium potatoes
- 2 medium carrots
- 400 grams (14.1 oz) of herring (seledka)
- 150 grams (5.3 oz or ~ 3/4 cup) of mayonnaise
- 4 medium eggs
- 1 small red onion
- fresh parsley, for decoration
Instructions
This recipe is quite easy to make. First, we’ll boil any raw veggies. And then we’ll grate or dice all the ingredients and create the layers of the seledka pod shuboi.
- Put the potatoes and carrots in a pot with cold water and over medium-high heat bring to a boil. Boil the potatoes and carrots until they’re fully cooked, for about 20-25 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes. After they’re done, drain the water and set the potatoes and carrots aside to cool, and then peel them once cooled.
- Put the eggs in a pot with cold water, bring to a boil, and boil for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, transfer the eggs to a bowl of cold water. Wait for them to cool for about 10 minutes and then peel them.
- If using raw beetroot, boil the beetroots for about 30 minutes until fully cooked. In our recipe, we’re using pre-cooked beetroots. Grate the pre-cooked or the cooked, peeled, and cooled beetroots.
- Dice the herring.
- Dice the onions and add them to the herring.
- Mix the onion and the herring.
- Finely chop the eggs, saving 2 egg yolks for later for decoration.
- Grate the cooked, peeled, and cooled carrots.
- Grate the cooked, peeled, and cooled potatoes.
- Get all the bowls of grated and diced ingredients and prepare to assemble the layers. We’ll be using a cake ring to achieve a smooth finish but you can freehand assemble it as well.
- Place the cake ring on a plate and put the first layer, the potatoes, and smooth it out with the back of a spoon.
- Add the second layer – the herring and onion mix. The potatoes underneath will absorb any delicious juice coming from the herring and onion.
- Add a thin layer of mayonnaise (about 2 tbsp of mayo).
- Add the next layer, which will be the grated carrots.
- Add a thin layer of mayonnaise (about 2 tbsp of mayo).
- Add the next layer, which is the layer of chopped eggs.
- Add a thin layer of mayonnaise (about 2 tbsp of mayo).
- Add the next layer, which is the grated beets.
- Add a final thin layer of mayonnaise (about 2-3 tbsp of mayo or the remaining mayo).
- Now we’ll take the 2 cooked egg yolks we saved for decoration and crumble them over the seledka pod shuboi.
- Decorate with some fresh parsley (either whole leaves or chopped parsley)
- Carefully remove the cake ring, and the herring under fur coat is ready. However, you should refrigerate it for at least an hour so that the flavors meld and the shuba is served chilled!
Notes
We used pre-cooked beets in this recipe as they were easier to find at the local grocery store. But you can also use raw beets that you can boil alongside the other veggies (potatoes and carrots).
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