What's in those jars? Polish cuisine demystified

There's something wonderful about Polish food. The food might be almost impossible to spell, but it's absolutely delicious. Polish foods such as zrazy, barscht, zurek and pyrogi are finding their way into British shops - it's such a shame to walk past them just because we don't what they are...

I visited Poland about 30 years ago, at a time of political upheaval  and food shortage. Everytime we went into a restaurant and ordered something, some surly waiter would say: ‘Nie ma!' - which means ‘We don't have it!'

But I went with a Polish friend, and we oftened dined at his relatives' homes. A plate of some small delicacy - pickled herrings or gherkins from the allotment - would be brought in. And we would eat it with a glass of vodka, which we would knock back, exclaiming ‘Na zdrowie! (To health!)' Then another dish would come along (smoked meat or tomato salad) and the whole ceremony would begin again. We had some great meals, although I do remember once having to be helped back to his place.

Over the last twelve years, there has been a huge influx of Poles into the country - particularly since Poland joined the EU in 2004. Around 600,000 came over to find work. Although some have gone home, many have settled. And independent shops and major retailers now stock wide selections of Polish goods. Tesco has been selling a range of Polish goods for the last three years. Sainsburys, Asda, Morrisons, Somerfield and the Co-op have followed this trend. And Tesco.com now has a dedicated channel where you can buy Polish food.

Dimark, based in North London, claims to be the largest wholesaler of Polish food, supplying the independent shops as well as the large supermarkets. The firm sells over 1000 products. And these are being bought by a wide range of people. A spokesman said: ‘The pickles, salads and juices are bought by just by everyone. However the sausages and ready-meals tend to be bought mainly be Poles living in Britain.' The ready meals include vegetables stuffed with rice, varieties of beans in sauce and assorted stews. There is also a big demand for Polish beer and vodka - sales of Polish beers and spirits have tripled since 2006.

Polish food has traditionally been hearty meals for peasants. There are strong tasting stews such as bigos, which is a hunter's stew made with sauerkraut. And there are numerous pork dishes. Golunka, for example, is a pickled pork shank. And there are numerous variants of tripe and boiled pigs trotters, but don't let that put you off; stay with me on this... Soups are also popular. The most famous is barscht - the clear beetroot soup. And there are also numerous bean soups. From the Baltic coast of Poland, there are numerous varieties of pickled herrings. All in all Polish food amounts to a delicious cuisine, full of strong flavours and lively textures.

THE RESTAURANTS...

There have been three main waves of Polish immigration to this country - the first was in the 1940s, when the Polish restaurant Daquise in London's South Kensington was established - it is still going. In the 1970s there was an influx of people leaving Communist Poland. Communist Poland had many faults, but it had lots of cheap milkbars, where you could get decent food such as scrambled eggs, stew , sausages, salads and various simple lunches. The 1970's immigrants set up similar restaurants, the most famous of which is the café at POSK, the Polish cultural centre in Hammersmith, London. Again, this is still going. It has a lovely Polish atmosphere. The latest influx over the last 12 years includes lots of newly arrived young Polish professionals. The upmarket restaurant, Baltic, based near Waterloo in London,  is owned by Jan Woroniecki. ‘We get a large number of young Poles. Their favourite foods are things like pyrogi dumplings and zrazy - rolled beef stuffed with cucumber.' The popularity of Polish food is growing. It is unlikely that Polish restaurants will ever take the place of curry houses or kebab shops, but there's no reason why the tasty sausages and pickles shouldn't soon be a regular part of the British diet.

WHAT TO TRY AT HOME...

Look out for these on the supermarket shelves, eat them as small snacks, accompanied by some bison grass vodka, if you can get hold of it):

Bigos - this hunter's stew made with sauerkraut is almost the national dish. Available in jars almost everywhere

Barscht - delicious sweet beetroot soup, usually served cold with a dollop of sour cream. Available in jars.

Kielbasa - Polish sausages. Eat them cold with dark Polish bread and pickles

Sledz - Polish herring salad or herrings soused in cream, are delicious cold

JACK SHAMASH, our Man in the kitchen puts meals on the family table every night of the week at his home in north London. He also writes for The Times, The Guardian and Horticulture Week (so he knows a lot about fruit and veg). 

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