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Bagels originated in Poland and became widespread during migration of Polish Jews. Polish cuisine has evolved over the centuries to become very eclectic due to Poland’s history and it shares many similarities with other regional cuisines. Polish cuisine is rich in meat, especially pork, chicken and game, in addition to a wide range of vegetables, spices, mushrooms, and herbs. It is also characteristic in its use of various kinds of noodles as well as cereals and grains. A traditional Polish dinner is composed of three courses, beginning with a soup like the popular rosół broth and tomato soup.
The side dishes are usually boiled potatoes, kasza or less commonly rice. Internationally, if a Polish culinary tradition is used in other cuisines, it is referred to as à la polonaise, from French meaning ‘Polish-style. During the Middle Ages the cuisine of Poland was heavy and spicy. The latter consisted initially of proso millet, but later in the Middle Ages other types of cereal became widely used.
Poland than the rest of Europe, hence spicy sauces became popular. The daily beverages included milk, whey, buttermilk and various herb infusions. Italian cooks came to Poland after 1518. It has been exported worldwide and is found in the cuisines of many countries.
It is usually preserved in wooden barrels. The only indisputable fact is that the court of Queen Bona was fed in an Italian fashion, because she exclusively employed Italian cooks, some of whom were originally hired to prepare parties for aristocratic families but who were soon serving typical Italian dishes as part of the court’s daily menus. 1682 is the oldest extant Polish cookbook. Until the Partitions perpetrated by the neighbouring empires, Poland was one of the largest countries in the world, and encompassed many regions with their own, distinctive culinary traditions.
With the subsequent decline of Poland, and the grain production crisis that followed The Deluge, potatoes began to replace the traditional use of cereal. After the end of World War II, Poland became a communist country which joined the Warsaw Pact. With time, the shortage economy led to scarcity of meat, coffee, tea and other ingredients of daily use. This situation led in turn to gradual replacement of traditional Polish cuisine with food prepared from anything available at the moment. Among the popular dishes introduced by the public restaurants was “kotlet mielony” meatball, a sort of a hamburger often served with beet puree and fresh carrots. Szczecin, usually added to sandwiches as a spread.
Zapiekanka, a baguette with melted cheese, meat, mushrooms, onions and ketchup. With the fall of communism in Poland in 1989, a wave of new restaurants opened and the basic foodstuffs were once again easily obtainable. This led to a gradual return of rich traditional Polish cuisine, both in home cooking and in restaurants. At the same time, restaurants and supermarkets promoted the use of ingredients typical of other cuisines of the world. Recent years have seen the advent of a slow food movement, and a number of TV programmes devoted to other cuisine and as well as traditional Polish cuisine have gained popularity.
Tłusty Czwartek or “Fat Thursday”, is a Polish culinary custom on the last Thursday before Lent, it is equivalent to Pancake Day. Traditionally it is an occasion to enjoy sweets and cakes before the forty days of abstinence expected of Catholics until Easter Day. The original doughnuts, popular until the 16th century, were made of the same dough as bread, would be filled with pork and fried on smalec. Only later were they made as patisserie.
Poland has a number of unique regional cuisines with regional differences in preparations and ingredients. All soups have freshly made chicken, beef, pork ribs or combination stock with root vegetables unless you’re vegetarian. Meat is either chopped and eaten with soup, used to make next dish or eaten alone with bread. Cream or purée soups are not common and traditional in Poland but are also prepared because of other countries’ cuisine inspiration. Zupa pomidorowa – Thin tomato soup made with tomato purée, root vegetables and stock, usually served with pasta or rice, sour cream is often added. Kartoflanka – Potato soup with root vegetables.