Photo: Simon Bajada • Food Styling: Sonia Tapia Iglesias • Prop Styling: Ana Villar. Photo: Simon Bajada • Food Styling: Sonia Tapia Iglesias • Prop Styling: Ana Villar
Ensaladilla rusa is, after tortilla española, the most ubiquitous and popular pintxo in Spain. With its creamy mishmash of potatoes, hard-boiled egg, mayonnaise, and various canned vegetables and seafood mounded on a piece of bread, it’s a crowd-pleaser. The variations are endless: the type of mayonnaise, the cut of the vegetables, the proportions, and the inclusion of ingredients from canned peas to olives to carrots to red peppers all yield different results. This recipe approximates the ensaladilla from Bar Ezkurra, widely considered one of the best in San Sebastián. Make it as written a few times, then experiment to find your own signature mixture.
Adapted from The Book of Pintxos: Discover the Legendary Small Bites of Basque Country by Marti Buckley. Copyright © 2024. Available from Artisan.
Featured in “A Local’s Pintxo Cheat Sheet to San Sebastián” by Marti Buckley.
Yield: Makes 15 canapés Time: 1 hour 30 minutes Kosher salt 3 large Yukon Gold potatoes (19 oz.), peeled 1 medium peeled carrot, ends trimmed 7 large eggs 3 cups mayonnaise, preferably homemade*, divided ¼ cup drained canned green peas ¼ cup drained canned tuna ventresca in escabeche, or any good-quality oil-packed tuna, flaked 1 baguette, sliced on
