Polish Cuisine - Bread

Bread

Bread (Chleb) and bread rolls (Bułka) makes the Polish cuisine and tradition complete. It has been an essential part of them both for centuries. Today bread remains one of the most important foods in the Polish cuisine. The main ingredient for Polish bread is rye or wheat, Traditional bread has a crunchy crust, is soft but not too soft inside, and has unforgettable aroma. Such bread is made on sourdough which lends it a distinctive taste. It can be stored for a week or so without getting too hard and is not crumbly when cut.

In Poland, welcoming with bread and salt ("chlebem i solą") is often associated with the traditional hospitality ("staropolska gościnność") of the Polish nobility (szlachta), who prided themselves on their hospitality. A 17th-century Polish poet, Wespazjan Kochowski, wrote in 1674: "O good bread, when it is given to guests with salt and good will!" Another poet who mentioned the custom was Wacław Potocki. The custom was, however, not limited to the nobility, as Polish people of all classes observed this tradition, reflected in old Polish proverbs. Nowadays, the tradition is mainly observed on wedding days, when newlyweds are greeted with bread and salt by their parents on returning from the church wedding.

We have told about a certain canon of Polish bread. It would be wrong however to conclude that there's only one type of it which is worth mentioning. Each good bakery makes its bread slightly differently. Breads are made of various cereals (not just wheat or rye), whole grain breads abound and sometimes some traditional extra ingredients are used (e.g. onion, sunflower seed or lard). And, taking a broader view, the variety of bakery products in Poland is truly magnificent.