Polish Recipes

About Polish Cuisine

Polish cuisine has elements taken from the cooking traditions of the many national groups that lived in the country side by side for centuries, notably the Jews, Ukrainians, Byelorussia's and Lithuanians. There are also some Russian, German, Czech and Austrian influences as well as dishes from more distant regions: Italy, France and the Middle East.

One Polish speciality is a profusion of excellent smoked meats, especially sausage (kielbasa), very popular throughout the world, made after traditional recipes and smoked over juniper or fruit-tree twigs. Poland is  also renowned for its multifarious types of delicious bread: white, brown, whole meal, with raisins, prunes, sesame seeds, and poppy seed.

An essential part of the main Polish meal of the day - which, incidentally, is eaten much earlier than in the West - is soup. A true gourmet treat is wild mushroom soup thickened with sour cream and served with tiny uszka. Other popular soups are kapusniak (made of brined cabbage), krupnik (barley soup on rich chicken stock with vegetables and chunks of meat), potato soup, and tomato soup.

Pastries and cakes are a traditional type of dessert  in Poland. Most often they are made from yeast dough (baba, drozdzowe) but there are also Swiss-roll types with poppy seed (makowiec), dried fruit and nut fillings (rolada), mazurek, apple Charlottes (szarlotka), cheesecakes (sernik) and gingerbreads (piernik). Doughnuts (paczki) with rose conserve are another favorite.

As for drinks, the Polish speciality is clear vodka, but there are also many popular flavored brands. These include Zubrowka ("bison vodka") with a grass blade from the Bialowieza Forest, and Goldwasser from Gdansk, which contains specks of 22-carat gold. Beer lovers won't be disappointed either: Polish beer is as good as German or Czech, and many breweries, notably in Zywiec, Warka and Elblag, have been well-known for centuries. On cold days, a drink of mulled beer or wine with honey and spices makes a popular pick-me-up. Stronger spirits worth recommending include a stunning number of fruit and herbal drinks consumed for their medical or warming-up properties, or simply because of their excellent taste. Try some Polish liqueurs: meads or sweet cremes made from alcohol, egg yolks, vanilla or chocolate and often used in desserts.



Polish Recipes:

Polish Mushroom Barley Soup

Bigos:  Poland's National Dish

Halushki:   A wonderful combination of cabbage, egg noodles, onion and potatoes

Babka Wielkanoncna Lukrowana:  Babka are small cakes made from yeast dough containing raisins or currants.

Stuffed Kielbasa

Fish in Horseradish Sauce

Polish Reuben Casserole


Polish Stuffed Cabbage

Grochowka:  Pea and Barley Soup






More Polish Recipes coming soon!