In Poland there is a well-known saying, “Proverbs are the wisdom of nations”. Like most Poles I have heard the proverb, “The grass is greener on the other side of the fence” meaning that we undervalue familiar things and may not even know what treasures we possess. One such treasure is Polish cuisine. It is rarely featured in restaurant, which usually offer “universal” dishes, although such local delicacies as kartacze (potato dumplings with minced meat, also known as cepelinai), kolduny (dough dumplings stuffed with meat) and kolaczki (sweet cakes with cheese filling_ are served more and more often.

Here, I will describe simple dishes such as krupnik (barley soup), bigos (cabbage stew) and pierogi, which are always met with enthusiasm, regardless of the age or personal preferences of the eater. It is foods such as Polish herring, zrazy, red beets and mazurek cake that make Polish cookery so worthy of interest.

Elżbieta Adamska