At the edge of Eastern Europe, Poland gets both cultural and culinary influences from both sides of the continent. With a passion for bread and sausages rivaling that of their neighbors, Germany, Polish food also extends to a range of home-cooked dishes that have developed over the country's history.
Zapiekanka
These open faced baguettes are so much more than poor man's pizza they often get delegated to. You'll find them usually at small fast food spots in the cities, especially as the evening rolls up. They make for a great snack or meal and nowadays feature a variety of different toppings, but the classic ones are usually mushrooms and cheese topped with ketchup.
Bigos
Often described as the national dish of Poland, bigos is a kind of stew made with various meats and chopped up sauerkraut. At home it's usually made with whatever is left in the fridge, added to both fresh cabbage and sauerkraut and cooked for a long time. Most claim that bigos should be cooked, cooled and reheated several times to give it a stronger flavor.
Pierogi
These little pockets of joy are Polish style dumplings. Much like the dumplings you'll find further east, instead of the same old pork filling, Poland's version feature a variety of different flavors. The most common ones use potato, cheese, mushrooms along with even sweet varieties that are filled with fruits and chocolate.
Kielbasa
Sausages feature heavily in Polish cuisine, with many varieties different to the kind of Polish sausage you'll normally find outside of the country in places like the US. With all kinds of different meats commonly used, smoked kinds and spicy ones, make sure to try any that you take a fancy to while traveling around the country.
Golabki
Cabbage rolls stuffed with meat are common all over Eastern Europe, but Poland's version are some of the best. Boiled cabbage leaves are wrapped around a filling of chopped meat, onions and various flavorings, they're usually baked and served with a tomato sauce, but are also simmered in broth.
Paczki
Poland's take on the doughnut, paczki are usually covered with sugar or icing and filled with more sugar often in the form of jam. The ultimate comfort food for any sweet tooth, if you're on holiday you shouldn't feel any guilt in consuming one or three of these. If you do, they're delicious enough to ignore that anyway.
Conclusion
Polish food is some of the most underrated in Europe and warrants a trip to this Eastern European nation just in order to try. Larger cities like Krakow and Warsaw are full of delicious restaurants offering both traditional fare and modern spins on classic recipes.