I was excited to cook food from Poland last week! Luckily, it’s still not too warm here, because most of these dishes felt better suited to cold weather.
Poland is a Central European country, south of Russia. It’s both the fifth most populous state and the fifth largest country by land area of the European Union.
Poland has been inhabited for tens of thousands of years, with settlements established as far back as the end of the Last Glacial Period (also referred to as the Last Ice Age). The country got its name from a West Slavic tribe known as the Polans. A pagan ruler of the Polans converted to Christianity, and a few decades later, in 1025, the Kingdom of Poland was established.
In 1569, after working together for years, Poland and Lithuania formed the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. At the time, this was one of the great powers of Europe.
The Polish Golden Age eventually passed, and war followed. Both Poland and Lithuania were split into partitions by three neighboring powers: the Habsburg monarchy, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Russian Empire.
At the end of World War I, Poland reemerged as an independent country. A few dark decades followed, including the invasion by Germany and the Soviet Union at the beginning of World War II, leading to the Holocaust.
Poland’s communist government eventually dissolved, and the country established itself as a liberal democracy in 1989. Today, Poland is a high-income economy with a very high standard of living, safety, and economic freedom, as well as free university education and universal health care.
What Do People Eat in Poland?
Polish food tends to be on the heavier side, with lots of meat, starches, and dairy. Popular meats include pork, chicken, and game, and there is a wide range of sausages, with kielbasa probably being the most well-known in other countries.
Mushrooms are a very popular ingredient, as is cabbage, which is often enjoyed in the form of sauerkraut. Other common vegetables include onions, potatoes, cucumber, and beetroot.
Boiled potatoes are a common side dish, as well as kasza—a porridge that can be made from just about any kind of cooked grain.
Some popular desserts include fruit compote (which may be used as a component in more complex desserts), poppy seed pastries, or cheesecake.
What I Made
- Bigos (Sausage and Cabbage Stew)
- Pierogi (Potato and Cheese Dumplings)
- Krokiety (Fried Sauerkraut and Mushroom Rolls)
- Żurek (Sour Rye Soup)
- Mizeria (Cucumber Salad)
- Makowiec (Poppy Seed Roll)
Scroll down to read about other popular Polish dishes I didn’t make!
Bigos (Sausage and Cabbage Stew)
Bigos, also referred to as ‘Hunter’s Stew’, is made with various cuts of meat such as beef, pork, sausage, and bacon, as well as sauerkraut and fresh cabbage. The recipe I chose included kielbasa, beef, and bacon.
First, I soaked some dried mushrooms in water. The recipe called for porcini or boletus but I had shiitake already, so I used those.
I browned the bacon and kielbasa, then sautéed some onions and browned the beef (I used beef chuck). I returned everything to the pot, along with the mushrooms (and the water they had soaked in). Then I added the remaining ingredients: sauerkraut, cabbage, apple, a prune, bay leaves, allspice berries, marjoram, caraway seeds, honey, salt, pepper, nutmeg, red wine, salt, and pepper. I let the bigos cook for a few hours, until the beef was tender.
I served this with potatoes on the day I made it, and I ate the leftovers with homemade rye bread. It was delicious both ways! I had been a little unsure about this because there was a lot of sauerkraut in it, but it really mellows once cooked for a while and I liked it here.
This recipe is from Chefs Binge. It was actually a slow cooker recipe, but it was easy enough to adapt to cook on the stovetop.
Pierogi (Potato and Cheese Dumplings)
I’ve always wanted to try pierogi but just haven’t really had a good opportunity. This week, I made them myself! Pierogi are little dumplings that can have a variety of fillings, such as sauerkraut, cabbage, spiced meats, or even fruit. I went with potato and cheese, which is very common.
First, I made the dough out of flour, salt, eggs, sour cream, and butter. I kneaded it and let it rest in the fridge for a couple of hours.
For the filling, I made plain mashed potatoes and, while they were still warm, I stirred in some cheddar cheese. I added salt and pepper, then let the mixture cool.
I took my pierogi dough out of the fridge and rolled it out, then cut out little rounds for the pierogi. I added a spoonful of filling to each one and folded the dough to make crescents. I sealed the edges with a fork.
Most of the pierogi I made went in the freezer, but I ate some for dinner. I boiled them until they floated, then sautéed them in butter with shallots until the outsides were crisp. These were really good and I am glad that I still have a few servings in the freezer for future meals. I’m a big fan of anything that I can make in bulk and freeze for later so I’m already thinking of all the other fillings I can use for future pierogi!
The recipe I used for these is from King Arthur Baking.
Krokiety (Fried Sauerkraut and Mushroom Rolls)
Krokiety are also referred to as ‘Polish croquettes’. They are made by rolling a crepe around a filling, then breading the whole thing and frying it. There are a few common fillings, such as meat or a mushroom and sauerkraut combination, which I went with. Traditionally, these are served with beetroot soup, but I ate them as a main meal with sour cream.
First, I had to cook the sauerkraut in water with bay leaves and allspice berries. I only cooked for 30 minutes or so; the recipe called for 3-4 hours of cooking and I can’t help but wonder if the author was using larger pieces of sauerkraut; mine was shredded. Meanwhile, I soaked some dried shiitake mushrooms in water.
I cooked some onions in oil, then added fresh mushrooms and cooked for a few minutes more. I added some salt and pepper, the sauerkraut, and the rehydrated mushrooms. The recipe also called for sugar; I added just a pinch.
Next, I whisked the crepe ingredients together: all-purpose flour, milk, water, eggs, and salt. I cooked the crepes in a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat, just until they were set, and set them aside on a plate.
To assemble, I spread some of the filling on each crepe, then folded in the sides a bit and rolled it up so I had long rolls. I coated each roll with beaten eggs, then breadcrumbs, and pan-fried them in oil until golden.
I’m not a big fan of mushrooms or sauerkraut but together, in a breaded and fried roll, I didn’t mind either. These were good, especially with sour cream! I don’t know how traditional that would be in Poland but it was a great combination.
This recipe is from Chefs Binge.
Żurek (Sour Rye Soup)
Żurek gets its sour flavor from a starter made from fermented rye flour. It also includes sausage and is often served for breakfast around Easter with a boiled egg. I ate my żurek for dinner instead.
I started the rye mixture about five days before making the soup. I combined rye flour with water, garlic, bay leaves, and allspice berries, and left it to ferment on the counter. I swished it around about twice a day as the flour kept settling to the bottom.
For the soup, I began by browning bacon, kielbasa, and bratwurst in my Dutch oven. I added onion, carrot, and celery root, then garlic. A few minutes later, I added water, a bay leaf, chopped potatoes, and marjoram, then let everything simmer until the potatoes were tender.
At this point, it was time to add my sour rye liquid. I was a little worried that it would not taste good, so I only added a little at first. But the flavor was actually pretty nice! I added salt and pepper, as well as a little horseradish and cream, and then removed the soup from the heat.
I served this with a boiled egg and it was delicious! The flavor was overall much better than I had been expecting.
This recipe comes from The Polish Housewife.
Mizeria (Cucumber Salad)
This is a simple salad that often accompanies meals in Poland. I think it goes well with some of the heavier dishes.
This was very simple to make. I used English/hot house cucumbers; I prefer them because they have thin skin and less/smaller seeds. I sliced them thinly, then salted them and set them over a strainer for 20 minutes.
Next, I combined sour cream, white wine vinegar, green onions, dill, a little sugar, salt, and pepper. I stirred in the cucumbers and chilled the salad before serving.
I liked this salad a lot, and I thought it was actually better after sitting in the fridge for an hour or so.
This recipe is another from The Polish Housewife.
Makowiec (Poppy Seed Roll)
Poppy seeds are a popular ingredient in this part of the world; I learned that when I made food from Czechia. In Poland, makowiec is a popular sweet bread filled with poppy seeds.
I began by making the dough out of flour, milk, egg yolks, butter, yeast, sugar, and salt. Then I let it sit for a bit over an hour to rise.
For the filling, I ground the poppy seeds in my spice grinder. It didn’t do a great job, possibly because they’re so small. Either way, I gave up on trying to get them all uniformly ground. I heated some milk on the stove and stirred in the poppy seeds. After another couple of minutes, I added sugar, butter, and honey. At this point, I could have added fruit and nuts too but I chose not to include them. Once the mixture had cooled a bit, I added whipped egg whites.
I rolled out the dough and spread the filling over it. Then I rolled the dough around the filling to form a long roll. My filling was a bit wet and kept trying to ooze out so this was a bit difficult and my roll was not very pretty!
I baked the roll for around 30 minutes or so until golden, then let it cool before slicing. I was worried it would look terrible because of my problems with rolling, but I was really pleased with how my slices turned out!
I thought this tasted good, but it would have been better if I’d managed to get the poppy seeds more finely ground. I also only made a quarter of this recipe since it calls for a lot of poppy seeds which would have been expensive. However, it turns out you can buy them in bulk from Amazon (and probably other places too) which would be a good idea when making something like this!
This recipe is from Polish Foodies.
Other Popular Polish Dishes
- Gołąbki – Poland’s version of cabbage rolls. The filling is usually pork and/or beef combined with onions and rice or some other grain. The rolls are typically cooked in a tomato sauce.
- Barszcz czerwony – Polish borscht, made from beetroot and other root vegetables.
- Kotlet schabowy – Poland’s pork schnitzel, often served with potatoes and sauerkraut.
- Wuzetka – chocolate sponge and cream cake, also known as the ‘W-Z’ cake as it’s said to be named after the famous W-Z route, a major thoroughfare in Warsaw.
Final Thoughts
This was another excellent week! I do feel I ate a little too much sausage but everything was so good. For my favorite dishes, I think I will go with the pierogi and the żurek—I really liked the flavor, plus it included an egg!
Next week, I will be cooking food from Portugal.