Vinehret

The story

Vinehret (also spelled vinegret), a salad of cooked beets, potatoes, carrots, and sauerkraut diced and tossed with oil, came by its name in a roundabout way: from the French word “vinaigrette” (a dressing of vinegar and oil), even though the salad has little in common with French cooking beyond the name, which reached Eastern Europe through the trade and cultural ties of the 19th century. The vivid pink that the beets lend to the whole salad makes it one of the most visually recognizable items on the holiday table, almost always served in a deep bowl so the color can be seen from across the room. Vinehret is a completely Lenten dish, so it fits easily among the twelve Christmas Eve dishes, and it is made a day ahead because the flavors of the vegetables meld over time. For Ukrainian families in the diaspora, vinehret is often one of the first salads they introduce to guests from outside the community, precisely because its striking color immediately starts a conversation about what goes into it.