Traditional Polish Dishes for Easter

Our look at Polish Easter traditions continues with this list of 10 traditional Polish dishes for Easter!

Typically, these dishes are served at Easter breakfast after attending Mass on Easter morning. Each element of food is customarily included (or represented) in an Easter basket which is blessed by the parish priest the day before, on Holy Saturday. A little of the blessed food from the Easter basket is also shared with each person at the table on Easter morning.

If you’re ever fortunate enough to be invited to a Polish Easter breakfast, you are sure to enjoy this extraordinary special feast!

1. Biała kiełbasa (white sausage)—white sausage is mostly served boiled, sometimes with horseradish, mustard, or ćwikła (horseradish-beetroot relish).

2. Żurek or Żur (soup made from sour rye flour)—garnished with biała kiełbasa and boiled egg halves.

3. Eggs (if decorated, pisanki)—whether served boiled, stuffed, fried or with mayo, there’s no getting away from eggs at Easter.

4. Śledź (herring)— served gutted and filleted, in pieces that have been marinated in vinegar and oil, with or without vegetable. It’s typically smothered with chopped, raw onion.

5. Chrzan (horseradish)—white or red horseradish relish pairs well with the variety of cold cuts. The red is called ćwikła and its color is due to the addition of beetroot.

6. Mazurek (flat shortbread cake)—usually baked only for Easter, it can be made of different kinds of dough and toppings; for example, marmalade, chocolate glazing, dried fruit or nuts, the possibilities are endless. 

7. Sernik (a type of cheesecake)—made with Polish twaróg cheese, which is more dense, sweeter, and less wet than other types of cheese typically used in cheesecake in the West. 

8. Babka (a tall, airy cake)—a no-knead yeast cake baked in a Bundt pan, which can be laced with rum syrup and drizzled with icing, but customarily has no filling.

9. Makowiec (a poppy seed roll)—similar to a strudel and sometimes covered with sugar icing, its texture is crunchy and nutty.

10. Easter lamb—made entirely of sugar and shaped like a lamb, it’s traditionally the centerpiece of the Easter table and included in the Easter basket. Often it has a miniature red flag with a cross.

Click here to read the entire Culture.pl article.

You can also find many other sources online for traditional Polish Easter dishes, some with recipes!

NOTE: All photos on this page, courtesy of Culture.pl, where the full photo credits can be found.