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The first traditional Polish dish on our list is the famed gołąbki. Originally a Ukrainian dish, known as holubtsi, it made its way over to Poland in the 12th century. The Polish have since made it into their own authentic dish.
However, the original version of Polish gołąbki consists of buckwheat groats with mushroom sauce and some sour cream on top, with the only core part of the recipe not differing from the modern version being the pork stuffing.
Polish gołąbki consists of boiled cabbage stuffed with rice and pork or beef or both. In Poland, most will serve this dish with tomato sauce and a few vegetables on the side.
Next on our list is the famed Polish pierogi. They're dumplings made from flour and filled with either meat or cheese. Often, Polish restaurants will serve pierogi with some lovely seasoning, fried onions, and sour cream to dip them in.
Pierogi itself comes in all shapes, sizes, and flavors. One of which is the spinach pierogi, which has a green color on the outside as it's mixed with flour and vegetables, with the filling being entirely spinach and garlic.
Another classic variant of pierogi is the oven-baked version. It's usually stuffed with beef or pork and has a hard outer layer of bread. It's bigger in size compared to the other variants of pierogi, but just as tasty!
The famed Kielbasa sausage literally goes with any food you get in Poland, and is often served with honey mustard dip.
One of the most famous kielbasa dishes in Poland is kielbasa with potatoes, cooked onion, and coleslaw. It's often served with other cooked vegetables, making it into an almost stew-like dish for people to enjoy.
Kielbasa isn't the only type of sausage that Poland has to offer. The blood sausage known as kaszanka is one of the more popular dishes in Poland, and can be found in any market square whenever a festival is happening. It's made with tasty seasoning and, just like with kielbasa, is also served with mustard to dip in.
The unique aspect of kaszanka is that it can be formatted into practically anything. One such way the Poles will eat kaszanka is by making it into pudding served with potatoes and pickled cucumber.
Another way to eat kaszanka is by making it into sausage pudding, placed on bread with some vegetables. Customers may add mustard or any type of sauce available when at a restaurant.
Another one of the more traditional Polish foods is the zapiekanka. It's a loaf of bread that is served with sauteed mushrooms, cheese, and ham. Often, customers can get this with mustard, ketchup, BBQ sauce, or all three as toppings.
The zapiekanka has many classic variations that people can choose from. One has ham and pork served with marinara sauce, white cheese, and grape tomatoes on top. Some are served with bacon, cooked onion, and other mixed vegetables.
The best of the zapiekanka can be found in Krakow, more specifically the Kazimierz district, where upon entering the market square tourists will be met with several restaurants that serve this dish (and with an even wider variety of flavors and toppings to choose from).
The next traditional dish on our list is the beef stew known as gulasz. It consists of classic beef, red bell peppers, potatoes, carrots, sea salt, and garlic. Polish restaurants will serve this dish with slices of bread for customers to eat alongside it.
Polish gulasz is a variant of a similar dish from Hungary, the famed goulash. However, the Poles also added their own unique flavoring to the recipe. One such element is adding mushrooms, and having mashed potatoes as a side dish.
In parts of Poland, restaurants will serve their gulasz with red beets and buckwheat. Sometimes, they'll offer kasha (a cooked grain) as a side dish to eat along with the gulasz, but one can mix the two as well.
Next up is the traditional Polish soup known as barszcz. It's a beetroot soup that also includes red onion, red wine vinegar, and garlic. Originally from Ukraine, it was later imported into Poland during the Middle Ages, with the Poles remaking the recipe into something of their own. It's a common dish served in Polish restaurants everywhere today.
In Poland, barszcz is also made with a mix of vegetables such as carrots, tomatoes, boiled potatoes, and meats such as pork or chicken, with sour cream served on top to help enrich the flavor of the soup. Traditional Polish restaurants in both Krakow and Warsaw will serve customers these variants of barszcz should one make the request.
One of the most beloved variants of barszcz in Poland is barszcz with pierogi. Customers have the option of choosing between meat or cheese pierogi to have in their soup upon request and, usually, restaurants will put eight to 10 pierogi dumplings in the soup.
The next soup on our list is the Polish sour rye soup known as żurek. It consists of boiled eggs, bacon, slices of kielbasa, and boiled eggs mixed with sour cream to make it extra flavorful. Often, Polish restaurants will serve this dish with slices of wheat bread on the side for customers to dip into the soup.
Żurek is served in both small and large quantities in Polish restaurants. More often than not, it comes in either a mug or a small ceramic bowl. However, there are exceptions to this, as some restaurants will give customers the option to eat żurek in a bread bowl.
Another variant of żurek soup comes with cooked pork or beef along with small sausage slices and chives inserted into it. Bread bowls can either be sourdough or wheat, depending on the customer preference.
The Polish traditionally eat a lot of meat as part of their diet, and the kotlet schabowy is proof of this. Similar to the pork schnitzel, it's a thick fried pork cutlet that's usually served with coleslaw and either boiled or mashed potatoes, depending on customer preference. Gravy is also something that customers can have served on top of the dish.
The cutlet doesn't have much flavor on its own, but rather the seasoning and gravy that is added to it is what makes the flavor of the cutlet so rich and tasty.
The final entry on our list of traditional Polish foods is the pastry known as pączki. It's a type of donut that is usually sprinkled with natural sugar or powered sugar on top, with some tasty strawberry or cherry jam inside to give it the extra punch.
Pączki has numerous flavors that customers can try out. One is the glazed-covered pączki with some small bits of citrus added on top with either custard cream, chocolate, or vanilla cream filling in the middle, which is sweeter than the more traditional variant of the pastry.
All across Poland, tourists will find entire shops that exclusively sell the pączki pastry and will offer flavors that are not found in other pastry stores. such as Oreo-flavored or chocolate-covered pączki for instance.
Sources: (Polish Foodies) (Nomad Paradise)
See also: Must-try street food for travelers
There are different types of cutlets that are served as well, one of which comes with meat sauce as a filling.
Kielbasa can be eaten in several different ways, be it cooked alone or in a casserole of one's choice, for example. One great kielbasa dish is the sausage pasta that can be found in several Polish restaurants.
The best traditional Polish foods to eat
This is some of the best food in Central Europe!
FASHION Cuisine
One of the main draws countries use to bring in tourists from around the world is the quality cuisines that each boasts. From frog legs of France to the fish and chips of England, Europe in particular has many different dishes to offer. But certain nations and their gastronomy are often forgotten, as is the case for Poland and delectable dishes. That stops right now! In this gallery, we look at some of the best traditional Polish meals and treats you just have to try. Click on to discover them!