Is the Polish cooking and diet good for your health?

Yes, if and only if you make changes to the ingredients when needed and choose the right food. Do not buy low quality meat (most have msg from the deli),  pickles made with a lot of white vinegar (instead of horseradish and garlic and salt), and brand X pierogi are not as good if you make your own with quality flour, even whole grain and intresting filling like blueberries or cabbage (not together of course). Read the label if you are buying packaged food and improvise if you are making it yourself.

If you live in Poland shop at the farmers market and eat the food babcia and twoja matka gives your to take home from the countryside, rather than those cheap Chinese noodels at Tesco.

These are pickle not make with white vinegar but rather salt (natural from ancient Wieliczka seas), garlic and herbs. It is sitting on my kitchen take and ready for Obiad (dinner).

For example, you can also modify any traditional Polish recipe to be healthier. Lets say if you are frying dumplings, instead of using a polyunsaturated fat, use olive oil. If you use your creativity, any dish can be better for you, there are no rule in the kitchen.

Vegetarianism in Poland

Believe it or not this cold dark climate does have people who do not eat meat.  I mean when you are freezing in a snow storm, waiting at a Warsaw tram stop, you do not think of eating a grape sandwich are you?  Well you might be surpised you can survive in Poland as a vegetarian. The ones I meet do it for ethical reasons, not health but look much younger than their carnerious counterparts.

I know a number of Polish vegetarians. In fact I know this one guy who is a world traveler and owns a couple of Vegetarian restaurants in Krakow (called Vega bar). He travels the world. I asked him does he try different types of vegetarian cooking he goes to such exotic places? He said no. I replied ‘what’? He only eats Polish vegetarian food no matter where he is because he does not want to waste a meal as he knows Polish cooking is the best. I find it hard to argue.

Poland is the land of organic vegetables. You could eat local farm grown cabbage, onions, garlic, carrots until you are healed and skinny. You can eat fresh berries, and fruits from the forests until you pop. There is no way you can convince me that you can not live on a healthy diet in Poland.

One more thing, maybe you want to skip the bar mleczny (milk bar which has traditional but often low quality food). Some are good but some have a lot of bigos that seems to have been around since the start of Solaridarity.

Do Polish people live long and how can you?

I am Polish and American and I think it might surprise you that life expectancies in the two countries are about the same, a difference by only a few months, but for different reasons. American spend a lot on health care but eat too much. Poles eat less, most food is non GMO, spend less on health care but smoke, they are less aware about other health concerns like enviromental toxins(this is changing) and use a lot of cooking with vegetable oils as opposed to more stable monounsaturated fats.

They do not eat too much junk food or go to fast food place, and rarely eat at resturants. Home cooking is the best and yes every Polish woman cooks without a question. Poles also walk everywhere and take a lot more vacations. They use herbal teas and natural healing methods more.

However, when it comes to diet I think Poles have a healthier diet. Not by virtue of what ingredients are found in their Polish recipes but rather they eat less. The less you eat the healthier you are. That is a scientific fact.

So anyone that tells me the Polish diet is unhealthy I think they are misinformed about nutrition.
There are many known cases of people losing weight on any diet. To some extent it does not matter what you eat but how much you eat. What you eat matters only when it comes to health and how you feel.

For example, there was a nutritionist who lost 50 lbs on a junk food diet, or the guy who ate at Subways for a year and lost even more.

How to eat for longevity with Polish food

Therefore, we can conclude that any diet can lead to weight loss but how many taste good and are good for you? That is, where Polish cooking comes in.

• Just eat moderate portions or less is more.
• Focus on the  good things like Polish chicken,  borsch or barely soup, cabbage salads, leak and carrot type salads, fish from Poland like herring, pickles, yogurt .
• Drink lots of carrot juice that is readily available in every shop in Poland.
• Eat fruit like berries that grow everywhere in Poland. Blackberries and blueberries are the best. Also consider wild rose and black currant are in every market and cookbook. These are rich in anti-oxidants, more than almost any other food. You can heal your body with these alone. Make a smoothie with these every night and you will see a boast in the way you feel.
• Polish flaxseed oil in its raw state is great on salads.
• Snack on things like sunflower and pumpkin seeds.

What is your impression of Polish cooking and how do you cook it? Ask any questions if you want to know how Poles really shop at the grocery store and eat.

When I young there were always a few traditional Polish foods that I was leery of. Polish blood sausage was not one of them. Why? I did not know it by its English name ‘blood sausage’.  My parents would just serve them up with onions and butter and under the Polish name Kiszka. I loved it.

If I knew as a kid, how you make blood sausage there is no way I would have eaten it. What Kiszka is a mix of Kasha or buckwheat (or barely) and pig’s blood. Pig intestines are used as casing. Jewish Kiszka is uses kosher beef intestine stuffed with matzo meal. The Germans have something similar and there is also blood pudding, which does not sound too good to me.

There are different ways that Kiszka is prepared, including spices added to the sausage, such as paprika.

It sounds disguising but it is not only delicious but very healthy. Buckwheat, which is technically not a grain but a fruit, has a lot of Rutin.  Vitamin P or rutin is a flavonoid good for capillary permeability. Blood has a lot of nutrients. It serves as the gravy in a lot of meat dishes but here is the main flavor in addition to spices. But the reality is most of this is Buckwheat and the pork is more the flavoring. That is why the price is pretty cheap compare to kielbasa or ham.

Kiszka I bought at the local market. There are many people who make it at home and sell it in Poland.

The way how to prepare Kaszanka is pretty wide open but here is how I do it..

How to cook blood sausage

• Onions are the typical main ingredient that you add. Chop the onions and garlic and butter. The objective is to make the Kiszka crispy. Do not overwhelm it with too much Onions.  This should just accent the
• Pepper is a secondary ingredient. I do not add salt as pork has salt anyway, but you can add this.
• Cook it in a pan, I like a black iron skillet as it tastes the best and over a gas stove, but you have to work with what you have. I cook it medium, not high heat. As it cooks I use a fork and break it up.

Cooked Polish blood sausage, it comes apart as you cook it.

Eastern European food is great. I grew up on in the USA and when I moved to Poland I thought it was even better. On any day, no matter where I am I can walk outside my house and get authentic traditional Polish cooking, and it is very cheap also. I think I paid for the above blood sausages about $1.30 total, maybe not even that.  It is about 11 Polish złoty per kilogram. That comes out to about 1.50 a pound.  Good Polish ham here in Krakow will cost 2 or 3 times that price per kilogram. I have no idea how much it would cost in the states but I do know, that when I am in the USA I can not find food that tastes as good as the food in Poland, even at the Polish shops. Sorry but its true, and I am an American. I guess has to do with the Polish method of farming and the soil and the freshness.

Let me know about your thoughts about Polish blood sausage or Kiszka or Kaszanka. There is also a bloodless version of this sausage and I am sure there is a vegetarian version also, somehow.

Polish herbs for cooking and healing

I am an American living in Krakow, Poland and the place I go is the Benedictine shops for herbs.  There are many good companies but for value I think these monks make the best raw herbs for cooking.  You can transform a normal meal into something divine.  The are organically grown and almost have a spiritual quality to them because they the proceeds go to help the monks do their work.

Some people argue that for a bag of basil, for example, is expensive in their shop. It cost about 8 pln but the bag is much bigger than the normal Polish herbs and look and smell better.

Compare these herbs. The first one below might only cost you 2 pln but you get much less then the benedictine herbs. They are herbs of province.

Polish cooking herbs from a normal shop

Now lets look at some Polish spices and herbs from the monks in Krakow. These are are to spice up your salad life.

Polish herbs for cooking from the monks

Here is an example of their basil, I think my favorite cooking herb after garlic of course.

Polish herbs - Basil

If you have medical issues, have you ever considered herbs?  I think they are pretty effective. But it takes about 1 month to start to see the effect for every month you have a condition. So if you have had hypertension for 3 years it will take 6 months of herbs before you start to see results.

My favorite herb for relaxing is chamomile. They also have herbal coffee with no caffeine and oils for aromatherapy and a lot more.

Next time you are in Poland or if you are an expat and live here like me try the Monk’s herbs from Poland. Here is their website  www.benedicite.pl/ or you can find their shops around Kraków like on Krakowska street in Kazimierz.

These Pancakes from Poland of their quite different and then American pancakes.  In fact then I first saw them I did not know what they were. American flat cakes use baking soda.  Polish pancakes are rather thin and flat without baking soda.  If you know what a French crepe is then this is what a Polish pancake looks like, you could even call these European pancakes.

Other then being rather thin, there are a few more differences in style.  For example, with Polish pancakes and instead of putting jam and jelly and syrup on top of them as we do in America, you actually wrap things like cheese or sweet gooey things inside.  Therefore, beside the name pancakes or the basic shape of a round disk they do not have much in common with the Pancakes in the USA.

I personally it like farmers cheese in Polish pancakes, however, if Polish pancakes have jam in them and they are on the table a usually eat them.

Sweet Polish Pancakes

You can also use sour milk and pieces of apple.

Polish pancakes for dessert

In Poland maple syrup is not common.  In fact, we actually have pine syrup here  not maple and it certainly does not go on pancakes,  it is more used as a medicine for people with colds.

What is our syrup replacement in Poland for pancakes, I would say honey.  Honey and Poland is everywhere.  I never knew there were so many different types of honey.  Each with a different taste and a different property.  If you want you can put honey on your Polish pancakes.

In restaurants people usually put powdered sugar or confectionery sugar on their polish pancakes.

Here is another interesting fact about Polish flat cakes, people in Poland usually eat them with their main meal in the afternoon, not for breakfast as an America.

Polish pancakes like sandwiches

Polish pancakes are actually very versatile.  The inside can be cabbage, meat, yellow cheese, or anything you can imagine.  They can function almost like tortilla.  What Polish people do is they might put meat and cheese inside the pancakes and then fried with bread crumbs and eggs and it makes croissant.

With the meat version you can also have with mushrooms. These are often served with borscht. Basically these are European sandwiches which are great to have when you’re on the go.

Pancakes from Poland

In summary:

• Polish pancakes are a main meal food.
• Polish pancakes function as a dessert food or a sandwich type food.

If you’re looking for recipes with Polish pancakes be the sweet type or the sandwich type I will put some on my recipe site. If you subscribe via rss you will see these recipes eventually.  I love cooking and live in Poland so this is a great chance to share with people Polish recipes.

However, I also I ask you to share, if you have any recipes you can share Polish pancakes or what ever please leave a comment as I would be very interested.

The fruit that I pick here in Poland not typically found in the US.

Mini strawberries – These are strawberries the size of your half the size of a pea.  They are way better than huge strawberries grown on American business farms devoid of taste and sprayed with everything you can not image.

Wild roses – The fruit from roses are very healthy, they are every where in Poland I love jam made from them.

Black and read current – has life extension qualities, very popular in the drinks here a very strong taste.

Wild blueberries – not round like american blueberries, but truly wild blueberries, irregular or football shaped.

Every variety of plums

Gooseberries – green cherry size fruit can be bitter can be sweet, good for your nervous system.

Oranges once grew in Poland about 500 years ago when the temperature was warmer as did apricots.  Its interesting to note in Ukraine next door apricots  still do in the southern region of Crimea.

Of course in Poland you find fruit like apples, pears, grapes and all the other things you have in the US.

But my point is there are many wild fruits that grow in Poland I have never seen in the US and certainly can not be found on the super market shelves.

Wild or organic fruit is everywhere in Poland

In fact a lot of the fruit here sold in the market is home grown or picked wild all of it in season. Since more than 20 of the Polish population grows something on a local farm most everything is organic.    I know its hard to believe but its true.  When I go to the village to visit my relatives always I come back with stocks of organic everything, no GMO, wild fruits and other things.

Then I discovered that Polish pickles are made with horseradish (not great if you are pregnant, but ok healthy if you are not), garlic dill and some salt.  No vinegar.  For me this was amazing, I could enjoy a healthy low calorie pickle with a superior taste and no acidic taste to detrimental affects.

Why Polish or Baltic herrings is different from Atlantic or other Herring?

Because the Baltic sea is less salty.  It is a mix between a large lake and a sea. The Baltic is feed by such an enormous supply of fresh water from melting glaciers in Finland and Sweden as well as rivers in Poland that it creates a unique micro environment. I  love Polish herring. It takes different from the herring in the USA.  Maybe its  the same and just my imagination but maybe not.

How herring is served in Poland

Poles prepare herring with vinegar or cream.  I go back and forth which one I like better, but now I think I like cream.  Of course there are many things that can go into herring recipes,  such as onions, red pepper, pineapples or anything you can image. If you go into  any shop in Poland you will see multiple types of Polish herring.  I do not know if  there is anything analogous in the USA.  Maybe like the USA has different types  of breakfast cereals, Poland has different types of śledż (that is the fish I have been writing about).

More about currents

One study showed that nice that were feed a diet high in currents lived 20% longer.  Currents of course have flavinoids.  In the USA I do not know why they are not popular, I have even heard of a law that restricts harvesting them but I do not know if it is true. But in Poland currents are everywhere. Current juice, preserves and just about everything else including Kompot which is a sweet drink.

From Polish rose syrup to Polish preserves

When your syrup is cold, then take your  Rose  leaves or rose fruit,put them into the cold Syrup, then cover them, and set them on a low heat, I use a gas stove but it does not really matter for about  two or three hours, then while they are hot put them into pots or glasses for your use. You need to add enough fruit or rose flower to make it really thick just pack it in.  In the Polish countryside people do it for a few days, but no one really has time now.  You should do this until it is like gum almost, really think. If you have any more ideas on Polish rose preserve, write me.

Living in Poland and loving Polish rose preserve

I love Polish rose preserves.  Right now they cost about 10 pln a jar, however, for me this is my favorate preserve.  I am an American living in Poland and I am basically here just for the recipes. Not really, but when you find things like fresh Polish rose preserves in the market it is a great incentive.  There are rose flower and rose bud preserves. I prefer the rose flower preserves but both are good.  In Poland there are wild roses everwhere, even in the park behind my flat.  The recipe for Polish rose preserves can really be used for any flower preserve.

Cauliflower salad is great because like broccoli is has anti-oxidants. Basically great for diet and health and it taste good. I buy it in the open market in Krakow.