Russian Salmon Pie Recipe (2024)

Recipe from Kirsten Dixon

Adapted by Ligaya Mishan

Russian Salmon Pie Recipe (1)

Total Time
1 hour 20 minutes
Rating
4(612)
Notes
Read community notes

The Russians call it kulebyaka, but in Alaska it is pirok, perok or peroche — all amendments of pirog, the more general Russian word for pie. Inside the flaky crust, wild salmon from Alaskan waters is layered with rice and cabbage, crops introduced to the 18th-century natives of Kodiak Island by fur traders from across the strait. Long after the Russians gave up the hunt for sea otter pelts and sold their claim to the territory to the United States, the frontier fish-camp dish remained a staple of the Alaskan table.

Kirsten Dixon, the chef and an owner of Winterlake Lodge, along the Iditarod Trail, and Tutka Bay Lodge, near Homer, likes to make salmon pie at Thanksgiving, when the Alaskan back country is already muffled in snow and guests arrive by ski plane, landing on a frozen lake. —Ligaya Mishan

Featured in: The United States of Thanksgiving

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Ingredients

Yield:8 servings

  • 3tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1red onion, diced
  • ½pound mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
  • ½head green cabbage, cored and shredded
  • 1tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • Salt and black pepper, to taste
  • 1tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 11-pound skinless salmon fillet (preferably Alaskan)
  • 2sheets homemade or store-bought puff pastry
  • 2cups cooked short grain brown rice
  • 2eggs, one hard-boiled, the other beaten
  • ½cup shredded sharp Cheddar
  • ½cup fine bread crumbs
  • 2tablespoons minced fresh parsley
  • ¼cup heavy cream

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

482 calories; 22 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 8 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 51 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 20 grams protein; 584 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Russian Salmon Pie Recipe (2)

Preparation

  1. Step

    1

    Heat oven to 375 degrees. Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 7 minutes. Stir in mushrooms, cabbage and vinegar; increase heat to medium. Cover pan and cook 4 minutes; uncover, toss and cook 2 more minutes. Remove vegetables from pan, season with salt and pepper to taste, and set aside.

  2. Wipe out skillet, add olive oil and set over medium-high heat. Add salmon and season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook salmon 5 minutes per side; remove to a plate and let cool. Flake salmon into large chunks and set aside.

  3. Step

    3

    Set a sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface. Gently roll out until it is large enough to fit a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. Transfer pastry to pie plate, allowing extra dough to drape over edge.

  4. Step

    4

    Spread brown rice over bottom of pastry. Peel and chop the hard-boiled egg, then add to pie, followed by flaked salmon. Sprinkle with cheese, then bread crumbs. Mound vegetable mixture on top. Sprinkle with parsley and drizzle cream over top.

  5. Step

    5

    Roll out remaining sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface until it is large enough to cover pie. Brush rim of bottom pastry with water and place second sheet of pastry directly on top. Using kitchen scissors or a paring knife, trim off excess dough. Use a fork to crimp the edges of the pie together and help the sheets of pastry adhere.

  6. Step

    6

    Cut a few small slits in the top of the pie to allow steam to escape. Brush top of pie with beaten egg. Bake until pastry is puffed and golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes.

Ratings

4

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612

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Timothy

In Step 1, consider cooking the cabbage, mushrooms, and onions longer than the recipe says. And in Step 4, consider adding extra cheese and just skipping the heavy cream. The cream is overkill, it just weighs down the other ingredients in unnecessary fat.

Enjoy.

MsBlucher

What is this state-fair winning, store-boughten crust of which you speak? Please to be divulging brand name, tovarich.

Nikolai

How about dill! Russian food is packed with it, and my Russian grandmother always prepared salmon with dill. Caraway with the cabbage might be nice, too.

Joan

The Perok recipe that my family grew up with on Kodiak Island is a bit different. We use regular homemade pie crust, medium grain white rice, sautéed yellow onion, cabbage, sliced carrot and sliced rutabaga and a sprinkling of frozen peas. Then we layer the raw but heavily seasoned with salt and pepper wild Alaska sockeye salmon and another layer of cooked rice before topping with crust. Our favorite side dish is potato salad with a bit of dill.

Mike Czechowski

I wish this (and other) recipe would give the amount of cabbage BY WEIGHT!!! Even I can grow cabbages that are a foot across - after taking off the outer leaves. And most of you have probably seen photos of Alaskan cabbages that are MUCH larger. So - how big is a cabbage that we use "½ head green cabbage, cored and shredded"???

JoAnne L

Made this with pillsbury pie shells and a really good piece of salmon (yep quite a dichotomy). At my husbands suggested added a tablespoon of grey poupon to the cream and some dill to combat the reports of blandness. Was delicious. Without the mustard, would have indeed been bland.

Jeannie

There is a Russian Vegetable Pie in The Vegetarian Epicure cookbook, similar to this minus the rice and salmon. My husband likes it, our children hate it. I tolerate it and remind him it may be why his ancestors left Russia. This tastes much better. I skip the rice, spread a thin layer of light cream cheese on the bottom, and liberally sprinkle on fresh dill. Everyone enjoys it now.

Amy

Really enjoyed this recipe, thank you!! Heeded comment warnings about spice and flavor, so....Increased vinegar quantity to 3 tbsp. white vinegar and 3 tbsp. balsamic; added another cooked egg, used greens of 1 lg. leek and 1/2 purple onion, added 1 small eggplant diced fine, good pinch of cayenne, and 4-5 tbsp. finely chopped cilantro instead of parsley for more flavor. Put into a springform pan to enable more room for increased ingredients. Definitely kept both cheddar cheese and cream.

Betsy

I made this last night. Used mashed potatoes instead of rice which gave it a different texture (actually quite nice), and canned salmon. There was enough for two pies. (I didn't measure everything exactly). The puff pastry was very good but regular pie crust would work fine. I took someone's advice from here and skipped the cream at the end. It was delicious--we're having leftovers tonight!

Diane Schroeder

Dill was excellent. I minced an entire bunch of dill and sprinkled half over the hard boiled egg layer and half over the vegetable layer. Great Russian flavor.

DjangoAmadeus.Com

Mine turned out yummy, visually and on the pallet...I embellished a bit after reading some comments about it being too bland.I added fresh chopped dill and tarragon.I added an extra chopped hard boiled egg.I omitted the breadcrumbs.I used wild rice instead of short grain brown rice.I omitted the salt and pepper during prep and instead added it, to taste when it was served ... I wanted to avoid cooking down the grnd salt and pepper... I wanted it to be sharper in flavor at serving.

Stacey Reinhorn

I like Judy Geise’s Kulebiaka from Great Meals from the Northwest. It uses a cream cheese pastry, poached salmon, capers, rice, mushrooms, dill, hard boiled egg and a bit of curry powder. The George Tsutakawa Sumi drawings throughout the book are also lovely.

Passion for Peaches

I made this again for Christmas, using purchased puff pastry, and the rise on the pastry was not good. I would caution anyone following the recipe sequence to the letter to let the ingredients cool completely (or chill) before assembly! Any hint of warmth will ruin your pastry. Ideally, you’d have time (and room) to refrigerate the assembled pie for 15-20 minutes before baking. Puff must be kept cool to protect the lamination. Great recipe, though, with addition of fresh dill.

DMG

To add to my note below: I used quinoa instead of rice for more nutrition -it works well.

Barbi

MsBlucher at alI googled the crust that won at Ky State Fair....Pillsbury

Yana

I'd be careful calling it "Russian" and would rather call it "Russian-style." Purely Russian fish pie will never have cheese or bread crumbs. Neither will it have vinegar. And yes, the taste is going to be bland, because this is how Russian cuisine is like, salt and pepper only for seasoning. But you will taste the ingredients!

Mod

Add tablespoon DuPon mustard

annecade

Made with add’l vinegars, rice pilaf from box, carrots added to veggies…extra veggie/rice mixture now in freezer. Used homemade puff pastry. Yummy. Maybe too much caraway in veggies?

Jack

Next time no rice, 1/2 package Philo dough on top, puff dough on bottom

Tesla B

After reading comments about bland flavor, I cooked onions and mushrooms with garlic and white wine before adding the cabbage. I also added tarragon and dill to the mixture. Interesting combination of ingredients, but all worked well together. I doubled recipe and baked in 9x12 dish.

NattieC

Initially I found this good but a bit bland. The second time I made it, I stopped to be sure that each layer tasted good to eat by itself. For me that meant adding dill to the salmon and a light sprinkling of caraway seeds to the cabbage mixture. I added two more hard boiled eggs for both texture and favor. I also added another raw egg to help bind it, and doubled the cheddar, which was enough to make its sharp flavor really pop against the sweeter ones. Five star plus.

Dman

Needs dill and feta

QJ

I thought the salmon was overcooked. Next time just barely cook it or maybe even try it raw??

Dee

Best with not your standard pie dish. Home made gluten free crust OK, but does not cover as well as puff pastry.

Betsey

Use coconut milk instead of coconut cream. Ignore boiled egg.

patricia

Can you make this without the crust?

Sarah

Made as a casserole. Didn’t use eggs, cream, breadcrumbs, of puff pastry. Garnish with a squeeze of lemon juice.

Purple Girl

I haven't made this yet. I've been looking for a recipe similar to one made by a family friend when I was in BC, Canada. It was heavenly - and all i remember was a flaky piecrust, lots of salmon (probably sockeye) and lots of cheddar cheese. I'm sure that wasn't the entire recipe. This one sounds more complex but I am willing to give it a try!

Natalie

Loved the original recipe as written! Also fun to riff on it: tried this with rockfish, Oaxaca cheese (had extra lying around), red cabbage, 3 eggs instead of one, and leftover jasmine rice. Also good! I usually only do a crust on top because there’s two of us and I don’t like reheating bottom crusts.

Linda Levin

It seems to me, this is a very flexible recipe.I made with pie crust (store empty of puff pastry). Cooked veggies as in the recipe. Shredded cheese as indicated. Used Alaskan coho salmon. 2 cups of rice seemed to be too much, so cut it to 1 cup brown rice. When combining all in pie crust, could only fit 2/3 of the veggies. As others indicated, skipped the cream.I thought this was yummy. Husband likes to really savor the flavor of his Alaskan salmon so this was not his favorite.

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Russian Salmon Pie Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the Russian fish pie called? ›

A coulibiac (Russian: кулебяка, romanized: kulebyaka) is a type of pirog usually filled with salmon or sturgeon, rice or buckwheat, hard-boiled eggs, mushrooms, onions, and dill. The pie is baked in a pastry shell, usually of brioche or puff pastry.

Can you freeze Mary Berry's fish pie? ›

You can freeze the cooked pie for up to 1 month. Reheat in the oven at 200°C/180°C fan/Gas 6 for about 45 minutes. Mary's wise words You can of course use just haddock, cod or salmon, or add a few prawns and some mussels too, if you prefer. You could also make the sauce with cider instead of wine.

What is the most popular pie in Russia? ›

1. Coulibiac - a True Masterpiece. Traditional Coulibiac is a fancy savory Russian pie usually made from a brioche or a puff pastry shell and several complex fillings, including white fish, salmon or sturgeon. Modern cuisine also allows meat or vegetarian based fillings.

What is the difference between fish pie and fisherman's pie? ›

Fish pie and fisherman's pie are both traditional British dishes made with fish and mashed potatoes. The main difference is that fisherman's pie typically includes hard-boiled eggs and is topped with mashed potatoes and cheese.

What is the fancy name for fish pie? ›

Fish pie, also known as fisherman's pie, is a traditional British dish.

Why is it called stargazy pie? ›

This traditional Cornish dish is so named because the fish heads poke through the pastry crust and appear to be gazing at the stars. But don't worry, you don't eat the heads, and the fish are boned to make them easy to eat. Read more about sharing.

Why is it called possum pie? ›

Possum pie earned its name because the pie "plays possum" by hiding all the layers of its ingredients under a thick whipped cream topping. The dessert does not actually contain possum meat.

Why is it called shepherds pie? ›

If it is made with lamb (or mutton, however mutton is rarely sold in England in the modern day) it is usually called "shepherd's pie" (because a shepherd looks after sheep) and has a topping of mashed potato, patterned to represent sheep's fleece.

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