A woman went to her neighborhood Walmart. Then she noticed a version of Wish-Bone salad dressing that she hadn’t seen before.
TikToker Nadia (@privetnadia), a content creator from Ukraine who moved to Missouri, managed to find a bottle of Russian dressing from Wish-Bone at Walmart. “Look what I found,” she said, while pointing her camera toward the bottle. She asked whether or not anyone else on TikTok had tried the dressing on their salads. She hadn’t found the product anywhere and thought it was an unusual and rare find.
Ninety-eight thousand viewers tuned in to see her discovery, but more than a few of them let her know that Russian dressing had been around for “ages.” A few viewers even explained just how long the dressing had been on store shelves. That’s when she and other viewers may have realized that Russian dressing doesn’t actually have any origins tied to the country. Rather, it’s an American dressing invented in the 20th century.
What Is Russian Dressing?
Russian dressing is an American salad condiment that’s made with mayonnaise, chili sauce or ketchup, horseradish, pickle relish, and Worcestershire sauce. The dressing was invented by James E. Colburn, a New England grocery store owner, sometime between 1906 and 1914. It then started popping up in recipes throughout the 1920s and ’30s.
In truth, salads weren’t a traditional staple of most Russian diets until the 20th century, so “Russian dressing” is not a staple in modern-day Russian cuisine. Cookbooks didn’t include “salad courses,” nor did they have any appetizer offerings with leafy greens. Instead, there were a few cold meals that were lighter and served a similar function. An article from the Moscow Times, for instance, described a meal of “boiled peas with onions dressed in flaxseed oil” as an early iteration of a “light appetizer.” While that’s generally not considered a “salad” in a traditional sense, it was a cold vegetable side.
Salted and fermented vegetables became a staple of the Russian diet, which then became a part of Russia’s theoretical “salad culture.” Eventually, vinaigrette salads made their way to Russia in the 18th century, but Russia stuck with hearty food and non-European definitions for its salads. Layered dishes with fish and heavy amounts of mayo became a cultural staple, effectively acting as a “Russian salad.”
Viewers Roast Nadia for Her Wish-Bone Dressing Walmart Find
A few commenters genuinely engaged with Nadia’s post and gave her recommendations. Others, however, emphasized that Russian dressing is common and regularly available at grocery stores across the country.
“I love when kids ‘discover’ things that have been around for a century,” one commenter humorously said.
But, some viewers claimed that they haven’t seen Wish-Bone’s Russian dressing in over “20 years,” and that it’s been missing from their local grocery store. That was what was so unusual about the dressing, at least according to a few of Nadia’s commenters.
Nadia replied to one viewer who said they hadn’t seen the dressing around in their local store, saying, “Exactly. Not every store carries it, and some only have it seasonally. I’ve noticed people will always find something to tease about.”
Why Aren’t Traditional Russian or Ukranian Dressings Sold?
It may be surprising that Wish-Bone has never necessarily made a traditional Russian or Ukrainian dressing for customers. Nadia herself pointed it out in her comments section, as Wish-Bone doesn’t have a “Ukrainian dressing” for its customers. But there’s a reasonable explanation as to why the company hasn’t created any Eastern European condiments.
Wish-Bone makes Americanized salad dressings, which take traits from Italy and France’s food cultures. Eastern Europe, while having a large amount of vibrant dishes, generally opts for simpler dressings that aren’t as easily commercialized. Salads from Eastern Europe frequently only include some form of seed oil, salt, and vinegar as wet ingredients to form a “dressing.” Other heavier salads heavily incorporate mayonnaise and don’t include many other base wet ingredients. Those ingredients by themselves, then, might be cheaper to just buy outright rather than purchasing a bottle in a grocery store.
Nadia, though, wants to see more Ukrainian products in stores. Her commenters may have roasted her for the discovery, but it did seem to be a new find that she was genuinely surprised by, especially if she assumed that the dressing was an Eastern European-inspired one.
AllHipHop reached out to Nadia via TikTok direct message and comment. We’ve also sent an email to Conagra Brands for more information on the rarity of Wish-Bone’s Russian Dressing. We’ll let you know if either party responds.