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Food market in Mszczonów

In this category you will find recipes from Poland in English.

Polish cuisine is a mixture of Eastern European and German culinary traditions, with some Russian, Italian, and Turkish influence due to historical reasons. It is rich in meat, especially chicken and pork, and winter vegetables (cabbage in the dish Bigos (Cabbage and meat stew), and spices, as well as different kinds of noodles the most notable of which are the pierogi. It is related to other Slavic cuisines in usage of kasza and other cereals. Generally speaking, Polish cuisine is hearty and uses a lot of cream and eggs. The traditional cuisine generally is demanding and Poles allow themselves a generous amount of time to prepare and enjoy their festive meals, with some meals (like Christmas eve or Easter Breakfast) taking a number of days to prepare in their entirety.

Traditionally, the main meal is eaten about 2 p.m., and is usually composed of three courses, starting with a soup, such as popular bouillon or tomato or more festive Barsczyk (Polish beetroot soup) or żurek (sour rye meal mash), followed perhaps in a restaurant by an appetiser of herring (prepared in either cream, oil, or vinegar). Other popular appetizers are various cured meats, vegetables or fish in aspic. The main course is usually meaty including a roast or kotlet schabowy (breaded pork cutlet). Vegetables, currently replaced by leaf salad, were not very long ago most commonly served as 'surowka' - shredded root vegetables with lemon and sugar (carrot, celeriac, beetroot) or fermented cabbage (kapusta kwaszona). The sides are usually boiled potatoes or more traditionally kasha (cereals). Meals often conclude with a dessert such as makowiec, a poppy seed pastry, or drożdżówka, a type of yeast cake. Other Polish specialities include chłodnik (a chilled beetroot or fruit soup for hot days), golonka (pork knuckles cooked with vegetables), kołduny (meat dumplings), zrazy (stuffed slices of beef), salceson and flaki (tripe).

CNP ingredients

Chroniona Nazwa Pochodzenia

CNP stands for ‘Chroniona Nazwa Pochodzenia’ which in the UK we know as 'Protected Designation of Origin' (PDO). Under the EU agricultural product quality policy, this "covers agricultural products and foodstuffs which are produced, processed and prepared in a given geographical area using recognised know-how". The following Polish ingredients are those which are registered as CNP.

COG ingredients

Chronione Oznaczenie Geograficzne

COG stands for Chronione Oznaczenie Geograficzne which in the UK we know as Protected Geographical Indication (PGI). Under the EU agricultural product quality policy, this "covers agricultural products and foodstuffs closely linked to the geographical area. At least one of the stages of production, processing or preparation takes place in the area." The following Polish ingredients are those which are registered as COG.

GTS ingredients

Gwarantowana Tradycyjna Specjalność

GTS stands for ‘Gwarantowana Tradycyjna Specjalność’ which in the UK is known as 'Traditional Speciality Guaranteed’ (TSG). It "highlights traditional character, either in the composition or means of production". The following Polish ingredients are those which are registered as GTS.

POLISH RECIPES