A special feature of Russian cuisine is its wide array of hors d’oeuvre. These can be made out of vegetables, meat or fish and can be ordered as a started or just to have on the table throughout the dinner, as they are often eaten after a shot of vodka is drunk.
Caviar is a popular item on Russian menus and it is usually the red variety (salmon roe) rather than the rarer and more expensive black variety (sturgeon caviar). However the Russian word for caviar (ikra) is also used for a vegetable dish which is made of aubergines or courgettes mashed into a paste which herbs and spices.
