Haluski – Polish Comfort Food

Witamy!

One of the favorite comfort foods of Poles on the East Coast of the U.S.  is Haluski – a scrumptious and satisfying combination of buttery egg noodles, fresh cabbage, and spices.   Traditionally, Haluski is a meatless dish often served during Lent.  But for the rest of the year, many home cooks like to kick in a little umph by adding bacon or kielbasa.  

Haluski may or may not be an original Polish dish.  Around Philadelphia, up-state New York or Buffalo, many claim Haluski as their own.  But others say that Haluski has Slovak or Hungarian origins.  But no matter – everyone loves it.  We’ve also heard that Haluski has been especially popular for many decades in Western Pennsylvania, specifically around Pittsburgh and the community of “Polish Hill.”   

These days Haluski is on the menu of several Pittsburgh-area restaurants serving Polish dishes.

As we travel around to various Polish festivals up and down the east coast, we almost always see Haluski being served in the Polish Food tents, right along with traditional Cabbage Rolls in tomato sauce, savory Bigos and flavorful Pierogi – and the recipes for the latter three dishes are in our book Polish Classic Recipes.  So here is an easy recipe for this simple and delicious dish which is perfect for supper on these chilly fall afternoons.  In fact we just made a big pan of Haluski, to test the proportions in this recipe.  It was delish and we've got left-overs for lunch! 

Serves 8 

6 cups green cabbage, cored and thinly sliced 

2 cups white onions, peeled and thinly sliced 

4 cups egg noodles, pre-cooked al dente and

     rinsed in cold water

1 stick butter or 1/3 cup cooking oil

2 teaspoons salt, to taste

1 tablespoon ground pepper, to taste

2 tablespoons chopped garlic, to taste

1 tablespoon caraway seeds, to taste  (optional)

½ pound crisp, cooked bacon, crumpled  (optional)

1 cup smoked, cooked kielbasa, sliced and quartered  (optional)

Heat butter or oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the onions, half the salt, pepper and garlic, and sauté until translucent, stirring often. (Note, don’t let the butter turn brown).  Mix in the cabbage and keeping cooking while stirring often, until the onions turn golden and the cabbage is starting to change color and become limp – about 12 minutes.

Stir in the noodles and more salt, pepper and garlic - a bit at a time and while tasting.  Cook until the noodles are just done – keep tasting.  Add the caraway seed, if desired, and keep tasting while the flavors marry.  Let it all cook together for 5 to 10 minutes, on low to medium heat, allowing the flavors to come together thoroughly.  Taste the noodles so they don’t overcook.

Variation #1:   To add some kick to the dish, pre-cook the kielbasa and / or bacon, and add it to the mix when adding the noodles.  Caution:  if using fresh kielbasa make sure it is thoroughly precooked.  

Variation #2:   After the noodles, cabbage and all the flavorings have cooked for about 5 minutes, transfer everything to a casserole dish and finish in the oven, at 350°F for about ten more minutes, or until the top just begins to brown and crisp.  A few seconds under the broiler may help to crisp up the top quicker

Note: the big key to this dish is to not overcook the noodles or the cabbage, otherwise the whole plate turns mushy. 

2nd Note:  this is one of those dishes where the proportions of cabbage to noodles to kielbasa are totally up to you.  The flavors come from the spices and the marriage of ingredients, so more or less of one or the other will just reflect your personal taste. 

Smacznego!  

EZ Dumplings in Wild Mushroom Sauce - Polish Style

Witamy!
Through centuries of wars and tough economic time, Poles learned to never waste food. Even in upscale homes, throwing out bread was always considered a sin. There were too many hungry people in the streets.  According to one superstition, any children who dropped a roll or slice of bread on the floor, were asked to immediately pick it up and kiss it, as a sign of respect that was thought to guard against future hunger.  True or not, stale bread or rolls are easily transformed into tasty dumplings.  

Pour a little Wild Mushroom Sauce over top and serve with a pot roast or stew, for a lovely, filling, cold-weather meal. 




Dumplings (Serves 6)

4 slices white bread, cut into small cubes
4 strips bacon, diced
1 medium onion, chopped finely or shredded
1 tablespoon chopped dill
2 large eggs, beaten
1/3 cup milk
¾ cup flour
Salt & pepper to taste

Brown the bread cubes in 400 degree oven for about ten minutes. Fry the bacon with onion until golden.  Add bread cubes and dill. Combine with eggs, milk, flour, salt and a dash of pepper.  Mix well.

Wet your hands and form the bread mix into small round dumplings about the size of a golf ball.  Drop into large pot of boiling water and cook about 8 to 10 minutes.  Test one for doneness in the center.  Drain well.  Top with mushroom sauce and serve with your favorite meat dish. 

Wild Mushroom Sauce  (Yields 2½ cups)

1/3 cup dried wild mushrooms
1 2/3 cups fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, shredded
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1½ cups light cream or Half & Half
1 tablespoon chopped dill  (fresh is best)
Salt and white pepper to taste

Reconstitute dried mushrooms by covering with boiling water – let soak for about 30 minutes. Drain well but reserve the liquid. Chop finely.

Melt the butter in a hot pan and add the fresh and reconstituted mushrooms, and onions and saute until golden and very aromatic.  Sprinkle with flour and stir in well for a few more minutes, taking care to not let the flour burn past a golden brown.  Gradually stir in the cream.  Add salt and pepper to taste.   Taste…if you want more mushroom flavor, stir in some of the dried mushroom “liquor” a tablespoon at a time. Keep tasting.  While stirring constantly, let the sauce simmer and reduce a bit until it reaches the desired “saucy” consistency and intensity of flavor.

Pour over the dumplings and garnish with fresh chopped dill.

 Smacznego!

Gluten Free Pierogi

Witamy!
Are you eating Gluten Free (GF) these days?  Are you missing Pierogi?  Well, despair not because there is no reason to deny yourself one of life’s greatest pleasures, delicious pierogi, arguably the most popular dish of Polish cuisine.  In truth, they are no harder to make than traditional Pierogi.

Laura made a batch of GF sweet pierogi this week with a cherry filling, just to test the recipe and the gluten free flour.  They were delicious and the whole batch disappeared quickly.  

If you’ve not worked much with GF baking, the key is in the flour. 

Laura used King Arthur © brand Gluten Free Flour, which is marked “Measure For Measure Flour” on the bag.  This makes it an easy one for one substitute for regular flour. This brand consists of several types of rice flour and assorted preservatives, but more importantly, it also contains xanthan gum which replaces the gluten in regular flour and makes your dough supple.  Be sure to check the list of ingredients on your package before buying.  If you can’t find a gluten free flour with xanthan gum, you can buy it separately and add about one teaspoon of xanthan gum to one cup of other gluten free flour.  You may have to experiment a bit, but according to “Google,” the rule of thumb for GF baking is that “for every cup of gluten-free flour in a recipe, use 1 tsp of gum for cakes and cookies or pasta and 2 tsp of gum for breads and pizza.”

Dough

Feel free to use your favorite recipe for pierogi, just substituting the flour, but first read Laura’s notes below.  Here is our updated recipe which has been thoroughly tested.  

2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups Gluten Free All Purpose flour
1 to 2 teaspoons xanthan gum (if needed)
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon of water, for sealing

Whisk together the two eggs, milk and salt.  Stir in half of the flour until flour is incorporated, then add the other half and continue to stir.  When the mixture comes together to form a thick sticky dough, place the dough on a floured surface.  Note: additional flour may be incorporated if the dough is too wet or sticky.  Using additional flour knead the dough until you have a smooth, supple dough that is soft but not sticky.  Form the dough into a ball, wrap it in plastic or cover with a bowl and let it rest for 15 minutes.

Take half of the dough and roll it out as thin as possible on a floured surface.  Note: When rolling and cutting, be sure to use lots of flour on your board and rolling pin. It should be almost translucent, approximately 1/8th inch.  Cut the dough into 3 or 4-inch rounds or circles.

Filling 

Start by assembling one tester pierogi, just to make sure of your techniques and measures.   Using your favorite pierogi filling, place a small amount in the center of a dough round.

Be sure to leave about a 1/3 inch edge around the entire circumference of your round.  Note:  Gluten free dough is a bit more “crumbly” than traditional dough, so if you use too much filling the pierogi won’t fold in half properly, the filling could spill out or dough will tear.  Also, over-stuffed pierogi can burst during cooking.   

Brush the edges of the dough circle with the beaten egg.  The egg acts as a glue to hold your pierogi together.  Fold the dough in half into a half-moon shape. 

Pinch the edges of the rounds firmly together using your fingers or the tines of a fork.  Tight sealing ensures that the edges stay together during cooking.  If your tester pierogi was good, the filling stayed inside and the seal was tight, assemble the rest of the batch.  Keep the finished pierogi covered with plastic wrap or a damp towel, as you are filling the rest of the pierogi, to prevent the dough from drying.

Cooking 
Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil, then turn the heat down so the water is just simmering lightly.  If your water is at a high rolling boil, your pierogi may fall apart.  In batches, gently place the pierogi in the boiling water.  We only cook about ten at a time in a 6-quart pot, making sure they have room to “swim.”  And don’t let them stick to the bottom when they first go in.  When the pierogi float to the top of the water, continue to boil for 10-12 minutes.  The thicker is your dough, the longer they will need to cook – plus cooking time for gluten free pierogi will be a bit longer than pierogi made with regular flour – about 12 minutes or so.  Cut the first one open and taste, to see if the dough is cooked all the way through.  It should be the texture of moderate to firmly cooked pasta.  Remove the finished pierogi with a slotted spoon and drain.

Dessert pierogi are great when topped with a sweet sauce made from sour cream and sugar. But we love to serve savory pierogi that have been sautéed in butter and topped with caramelized onions and bacon.  Check out our Polish Classic Recipes cookbook for classic fillings and toppings. 


In closing, Celiac disease and gluten intolerances now affect many more people in the world than when most Polish classic recipes were first created.  Regardless of the why or wherefore, gluten intolerance is a reality of today’s life and anyone in the business of eating or cooking should be aware of this and other common food allergies. 
Smacznego!