Ancient Times and Influences: Poland Although the area, which now forms Poland, has been occupied for thousands of years, Polish history only dates from the ninth century when the Polians (dwellers in the field) became the dominant Slavic tribe in the region. The two main ingredients used in everyday cooking were meat in particular game such as wild boar or venison, beef and staple cereals such as rye, wheat and barley especially in the form of bread. The heavily forested area yielded a good supply of mushrooms, forest fruits, nuts and honey as did freshwater fish such as pike, perch, sturgeon and carp and dairy produce. On the whole the cuisine was quite heavy reflecting the need for warming foods in the cold winters. With no natural geographical defenses, over the years Poland has been the subject of invasions and land struggles including wars with Russia, Austria, Sweden and Germany and for a brief time a Polish state was even supported by Napoleon. The cuisine has been influenced not only by these countries' culinary traditions, but also from other national groups such as Jews, Ukrainians, Belarussians and Lithuanians who settled there. One particularly important influence started around 1518 when Queen Bona Sforza brought in many chefs from Italy and France. During this period, native polish vegetables were supplemented with newly introduced produce such as lettuce, leek, celery and cabbage, the latter to become a main ingredient in Polish cooking. Another major influence came from the close trading relations with the Middle East. These trading links meant that the price of spices such as juniper, pepper and nutmeg were relatively low and the use of spices in everyday cuisine became popular one has to say not just as flavorings but also to mask the smell of badly preserved meats. The various partitions in the 1700's saw the subsequent decline of Poland, which prior to this time had been one of the largest countries in Europe. Grain production during this period of turmoil resulted in potatoes becoming more of a staple often replacing the traditional cereal staples. Pierogi is a very traditional Polish dish eaten by everyone. Although often described as a stuffed dumpling, this specialty is more akin to Italian Ravioli. Indeed, it is thought that Queen Bonna who was Italian introduced them to Polish cuisine about 500 years ago. These little treasures are truly versatile. They can be served with soup, as a starter sprinkled with fried onion and bacon, as a main course either with a sauce or plain with sour cream although more often as an accompaniment to a main course and even as a dessert. Once boiled they can be served as they are, sautéed in butter or even deep fried and can be filled with practically anything you have to hand. Favorite fillings include seasoned pork or beef with onions, cottage
cheese, sauerkraut, potatoes, cabbage and mushrooms. Once boiled,
they can be frozen.
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