Spices are not very popular. When you visit an ordinary Russian family as an invited guest, you may expect black pepper, vinegar, sugar and salt to be flavor enhancers. Pickles, onions and dill are also important. City people are increasingly trying to add spices to their favorite recipes, but the process is slow.
For my parents, Soviet rule was an era of hunger, just like almost everyone born before World War II. I have never experienced hunger, but for many children I have played with, when they are running around the backyard in Moscow, they just want to eat a piece or two of rye bread with a little salt on it. This explains why people strongly prefer salty taste rich in fat and sugary carbohydrates. As my father once said, "You can't destroy oatmeal with butter".
The Turks made us fall in love with the meat cooked in water wrapped in dough. Unlike wonton and jiaozi in East Asia, our pelméni lacks much more seasoning than adding fat. This method has evolved into recipes, such as mantí, plov and many other things that say "let yourself eat meat, carbohydrates and fat".
The method of "never getting fat" is also suitable for simple meals, such as fried potatoes, mushrooms and salads (our definition of salad includes one of cooked vegetables).
We love caramel cream as much as the French. However, we don't agree with their habit of tasting exquisite side dishes. If it tastes good, why shrink back?
For millions of poor people in all provinces, the chaotic1990s was a hard time. The habit of adding a lot of crazy mayonnaise (not dessert or coffee) to many cheap processed "meats" has created a generation who associate the happiness of food with these things. In Russia, these fats usually contain expired or reused vegetable fats.
In Russia, overcooking is not considered an insult to cooking. However, undercooked food is a common and irreversible disaster. If you invite Russian guests and offer food with more than one uncooked ingredient, some of them may decide whether you hate them or know nothing about cooking.
As for Russian desserts, we don't go to Turks, whose pakhlavá and other carbohydrates with high sugar content drip oil. But please make sure that there is nothing below the "calorie bomb" category among our most popular desserts.