Polish Food
Mark’s Note: There’s no better place to get expert food advice and tips than from a local of that country. Agness, a Polish traveler and blogger, shares with us some of her favorite things to eat when she’s at home. So when you’re in Poland, don’t miss her expert food advice!
About Polish Food
Traditional Polish cuisine is a real calories bomb, but once you try it, you will not be able to resist the temptation.
It is rich in various kinds of meat (pork, chicken, beef) and famous for its excellent bread and delicious sausages (better than German!).
The basic ingredients used in Polish foods are beetroot, sauerkraut, cucumbers (pickles and gherkins), mushrooms, sausages, kohlrabi, sour cream and different herbs and species (marjoram, dill, caraway, parsley and pepper).
A Polish menu is constantly enriched with new flavours, sometimes even exotic.
Here are my top 10 best Polish foods made according to traditional recipes:
Pierogi (Polish dumplings)
1. Pierogi (Polish dumplings)
Dumplings are made of thinly rolled-out dough filled with a variety of fillings. The most popular fillings are meat, sauerkraut and mushrooms, seasonal fruit (blueberries, strawberries and cherries), buckwheat, sweet cottage cheese or boiled potatoes with fried onions (called Russian dumplings). Pierogi is a Polish food that’s always served for Christmas.
Homemade Rosół with vegetable and grilled onion
2. Rosół (broth/ chicken soup)
Rosół is the most common soup served in Poland. It tastes best after Sunday’s church on cold days. It is very easy and quick to prepare, commonly served with homemade noodles. The ingredients needed for the soup are water, any piece of chicken, onion, small leek, onion, green celery, parsley, cabbage, salt and pepper.
A bowl of Gołąbki topped with homemade tomato sauce
3. Gołąbki (cabbage roll)
Gołąbki is a typical traditional Polish food made of minced pork with some rice, onion, mushrooms, wrapped in white cabbage leaves. There are also other variations of fillings such as poultry, mutton or without meat. Before serving cabbage are simmered / fried in fat.
Polskie naleśniki (Polish pancakes) Polish Food
4. Polskie naleśniki (Polish pancakes)
Polish pancakes are very thin and they are served either with cheese, quark previously mixed with sugar, jam, fruits and powdered sugar or with meat and vegetables- all equally tasty.
Łazanki z kapustą i grzybami
5. Łazanki z kapustą i grzybami
It is a very simple dish consisting cabbage, pork meat, homemade pasta noodles and vegetables (chopped onions and sliced carrot). It is delicious and easy to make.
Śledź w oleju z cebulą (herring in oil with onion)
6. Śledź w oleju z cebulą (herring in oil with onion)
Herring is a fish you can prepare in various ways. However in Poland, there are two traditional ways of serving the herring, either with sour cream and pickled onions or with oil and garlic.
7. Bigos (Hunter’s stew)
It is a very traditional Polish dish and its basic ingredients are shreds sauerkraut, fresh cabbage (sometimes used only sauerkraut), various types of meat and sausages, dried mushrooms, prunes, onions and spices.
Kotlet schabowy with potatoes and cabbage salad
8. Kotlet schabowy (breaded pork cutlet)
Kotlet schabowy is one of the most delicious and the oldest Polish foods. The pork breaded cutlet coated with breadcrumbs (served with bones or without) can be perfectly served with buttered potatoes and cabbage salad. If you don’t like pork meat, try to eat chicken cutlet made the same way as the pork one.
9. Gulasz (Goulash)
This dish is originally from Hungary, but the Polish recipe has been slightly changed. It is a stew of meat served with potatoes and vegetables, seasoned with friend onion and peppers.
Traditional Polish croissant cookies with a strawberry jam filling
10. Dessert - Polish croissant cookies
If you feel like having something sweet for your snack time, you can try traditional Polish croissant cookies. They are filled with jam and made of puff pastry or yeast.
Have you ever tried Polish food? If so, what was your favourite? Share your food experience with me!
About the Author
Agness is a Polish vagabond who, after graduation, left her comfort zone and set off for a journey of her lifetime to China in 2011.
She has been constantly travelling the world since then (slowly, but surely as she says), living like a local for less than $25 a day, and blogging her experiences on eTramping.com.
She is passionate about photography and adventure blogging and shares her life enthusiasm and travel experience with everyone around. Follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
My grandmother used to make cabbage rolls and goulash all the time. Yum!
Annette | Bucket List Journey recently posted..Bucket List of 10 Spanish Pintxos (Pinchos) to Eat
Great, good to hear that Annette!
My grandfather made the cabbage rolls also. Very yummy…
Great to hear that Raquel, I bet they were delicious!
Polish pancakes and cabbage rolls look delicious!
Stephanie – The Travel Chica recently posted..The Brooklyn Bridge in Photos
I agree Stephanie!
I am in Belgium now enjoying some waffles, but I can’t wait to get back to Poland for Christmas and have some traditional Christmas dishes which are slightly different than these I described in the guest post
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Agness recently posted..5 Things to do to Travel in Malaga on the Cheap
Mmm, I know those home cooked Christmas dishes are going to be wonderful – have some bites for me!
i should NOT have read this while hungry
Chris recently posted..Leuven Town Hall
Thanks Chris, it all does look wonderful!
I love em all so much! My favorite has to be bigos though, the leftovers get better and better over time! Sadly, I’m not much of a cook, but luckily I can order these dishes at http://www.polana.com =)
Hey Kasia, glad you love Polish food!