Poland: More Than Pierogis

Back in May, I took my first trip to Poland. We were going as a family quest for information so I didn't have a huge itinerary or bucket list. Obviously I was planning to eat a lot of pierogis but I was not prepared for the level of food Poland has to offer! Not just the variety of traditional food but also quantities. There were numerous occasions where we dined with family and it was just course after course of homemade dishes that I'd never heard of! The below is a summary of the more traditional ones (I think...) which I hope to try and make one day.

1. Pierogis- Okay, yes, there is more than just pierogis in Poland but come on! Pierogis! They come in all kinds of varieties including fruit! I'd never had blueberry pierogis before but I will certainly be having them again.

2. Babka- This is a kind of cake which is open to interpretation. Sometimes it's a desserty cake and sweet but the variety I found more often was a potato babka. It looks like a loaf of mashed potatoes so thick, you can slice it like bread. And oh so greasy and delicious.

3. Bigos- In my brain space, I often mix this up with babka because it starts with a 'b' too. Bigos though is a saurkraut dish with meat. I don't actually like saurkraut but I love bigos. The saurkraut is soft and not sharply fermented like the saurkraut I'm used to. Mixed with kilbasa or beef, it becomes a hearty stew, minus the broth (sometimes called Hunter's Stew which I've had in the US).

4. Goulash- Now this is a stew. Again, there are a number of ways to make this but it reminds me of chilli but with an eastern European flare. In my mind, it's like the Polish equivalent to American chilli. 

5. Ice Cream- Fine, Poland didn't invent ice cream but they love it. Ice cream everywhere. Sometimes it's more like gelato but they have the home-churned variety as well. Perfect for the hot summer days of sun! We went to Bubble Waffle which has locations all over the world so check it out.