Top 10 recipes for Polish cuisine

Tasting local food is an important part of any trip. These ten popular dishes and delicacies of Polish cuisine will delight all visitors to this country.

10 Beef roll

These are pieces of meat that are rolled and wrapped around the filling and stewed in gravy with onion or mushroom sauce. Buckwheat or barley is also added to this dish. Rolls are found in countless guises these days. They are often served with bacon, pickles, chopped onions, mustard, and wild mushrooms.

9 Veal paprikash

Paprikash entered Polish cuisine under the influence of Hungary. After frying, diced veal is stewed with garlic, paprika (preferably Hungarian) and seasoned with cream. According to experts, it is the cream that distinguishes paprikash from goulash. Pickled cucumbers are a must-have addition to it.

8 Vareniki

Dumplings are made from thinly rolled dough, which is boiled in water, stuffed and, depending on the type, fried until crisp. There is an endless variety of toppings, both savory and sweet, including meat, sauerkraut, wild mushrooms, cheese, blueberries and strawberries.

7 Blood sausage

The sausage for which Poland is famous all over the world is sure to be eaten with enthusiasm. It is kneaded from buckwheat or barley groats, spices and blood. However, this last ingredient is not acceptable to some people. In addition, sausage made from beef or pork with added giblets, blood and spices may not have many fans among foreigners.

6 Makovets

This is a kind of strudel or yeast cake. The filling, rolled inside, is made from finely chopped poppy seeds, honey, butter, raisins and walnuts. Then the cake is covered with icing and trimmed with orange peel. In some parts of Poland, it is customary to make a pie with only poppy seed mixture, completely forgetting about the dough.

5 Cheesecake

The cheesecake is made from cottage cheese, ricotta and lots of egg yolks. Orange zest, raisins, crumbs, or chocolate are often added. Cheesecake is usually baked in the oven and eaten all year round, but it is always prepared for Christmas, weddings and other important holidays.

4 Bigos

Bigos is a meat dish and the epitome of Polish cuisine. It is a hearty combination of stewed sauerkraut, various meats, smoked sausages, wild mushrooms, spices and prunes. This is a food that is best eaten with thick crispy bread and butter.

3 Schnitzel

Poland's best and most popular main dish: flattened and breaded pork chop (sometimes chicken breast) fried in lard or butter. Side dishes include shredded, buttered potatoes and shredded beets, sauerkraut salad, or mizseria (cucumber, dill, and sour cream salad).

2 Cabbage rolls

Typically, cabbage leaves are wrapped around chopped pork shoulder and rice filling. It is then stewed in broth and served with clear broth or tomato-sour cream sauce. Cabbage rolls can be stuffed with poultry, lamb, or even made vegetarian, with a potato, buckwheat and lentil base.

1 Rosol

This is the most common broth, usually made with chicken or beef and then served with noodles and chopped parsley. Rosol can be served as a two-course lunch: first the soup, and then the meat on which the broth was cooked, with potatoes, vegetable salad and mustard. It is believed to have medicinal properties, which is why it is often eaten to fight off colds or flu.