From Fiber to Probiotics: A Polish Guide to the Newest Nutrition Trends
The whirlwind of dieting trends is relentless: there are so many ideas on how to eat right and what is the ‘perfect diet’ that it’s easy to lose oneself in the noise. While it’s better to stay away from dangerous fads, extreme restriction and obsessive dieting, there are some well researched ways of improving our health through what we eat – and Polish food culture is filled with nutritious treasures worth incorporating into your diet. Here’s how to feed your brain, skin, and gut – the Polish way!
Fibermaxxing grandpa style
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Bran with strawberries, photo: Krystyna Błatkiewicz / Reporter / East News
I remember my grandfather having his daily fix of oat or rye bran (otręby in Polish) – I think there was also some yoghurt and apple involved in the meal – to keep his gut healthy. Bran consists of the outer hard layers of the grain and is the byproduct of milling in the production of refined grains. Contrary to those – which are delicious, but mostly made of simple carbs which are a source of energy but not much else – bran is rich in dietary fiber which has become the latest craze in nutrition, and rightly so, as it promotes satiety, delays the absorption of glucose, lowers cholesterol, reduces blood pressure and so forth. In Poland bran is also incredibly cheap.
There are many more sources of fiber in the traditional Polish diet – legumes are fantastic, so having a portion of fasolka po bretońsku (our version of baked beans) or grochówka (split pea soup) is a great idea – and if you eat it alongside some wholegrain rye bread, you are truly fibermaxxing!
All the good bacteria
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Salad sides for lunch featuring red cabbage, sauerkraut, beetroot and carrots, photo: Getty Images
Fermentation is one of your gut’s best friends: eating fermented foods introduces beneficial live probiotics that support digestion, strengthen your immune system, and improve overall microbiome balance, which is all the rage as research shows important links between our microbiome and not only our gut, but also our brain health. For a long time, we considered kiszonki an acquired taste – visitors from the West would sometimes ask if we were giving them spoiled food – but now, thanks to products such as kimchi and kefir, their punchy, sour flavour has become more popular.
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Kefir, photo: Natali Popova / Getty Images
Kefir is an interesting one: it has become very trendy in Western countries, where it is often marketed as a health food and quite costly, while in Poland it has been a staple for over a hundred years. First there was soured milk: fermenting milk was the primary method of preserving it on rural farms, where it was stored in clay pots in cool cellars. Kefir, which has a more diverse bacterial flora (it is created through a complex process of both lactic and alcoholic fermentation which results in a unique microbiological profile) appeared on Polish tables probably around the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, having been introduced from the Caucasus region. At first it was – as it is now in the West – sold as a health food, but it soon became very popular and quite cheap thanks to a widespread production by dairy cooperatives. A bottle of kefir and a Kaiser roll (kajzerka) was a legendary breakfast during the times of the People’s Republic of Poland.
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Half-sour pickles, photo: Robert Stachnik / Reporter / East News
Ogórki kiszone – fermented dill pickles – are also omnipresent: we love them and eat them all year round on sandwiches, in salads or as a zakąska, but in the warmer seasons it is also very much worth it to sample ogórki małosolne (which can be referred to as half-sour dill pickles or newly pickled cucumbers) which are crunchy, just slightly fermented, and absolutely glorious. Many more vegetables can be fermented: small, pickled tomatoes burst with delicious juices in your mouth, and pickled radishes have a lovely, spicy, sour crunch. Yet the most popular fermented vegetable is obviously…
Cabbage crush
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A barrel full of sauerkraut, photo: Jan Graczyński / East News
Kapusta kiszona (Sauerkraut) is a true Polish staple. Americans love it on their Reuben sandwiches and hot dogs, but here we are cabbagemaxxing: long before the Pinterest trend, Poles have been eating it both fermented and fresh in a lot of different ways: one of the most important culturally is bigos (hunter’s stew) which is a mixture of cabbage with a few kinds of meats, mushrooms and (often) prunes, eaten on special occasions from wedding parties to New Year’s Eve. There are also delicious cabbage soups like kapuśniak and kwaśnica and obviously the famous cabbage rolls gołąbki, but if you want the most health benefits – from Vitamin K and C to folate and fiber – it is best eaten as a slaw. There are different varieties of surówka z kapusty (cabbage slaw): sauerkraut with apples and caraway, red cabbage slaw with carrots and a yoghurt sauce or young cabbage with dill and lemon are all delicious.
Eat your skincare
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Herring, photo: Getty Images
The trend of ‘eating your skincare’ – the idea that you can skip some of your skincare routine steps by feeding your biggest organ from the inside – is all over social media. It does have some science to back it up, although you can’t really replace your night cream with sardines as the nutrients in food don’t work directly on the skin but are used by all the other organs as well. Having said that, it is indeed beneficiary to eat foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, and beta-carotene to improve your skin’s health and appearance, and Polish cuisine can help you do just that.
Weren’t we just talking about surówki? There are two popular carrot-based slaws you can chose from to get your beta-carotene fix (our bodies convert it into a form of vitamin A called retinol which is essential for skin maintenance): one with grated apples (vitamin E helps with hydration!) and the other with horseradish (vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant!). Our beloved herring is an exceptional source of Omega-3 fatty acids (a standard serving easily surpasses your daily recommended amount) just as linseed oil that herring is sometimes preserved in.
Seeking communality
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Family enjoying a summer lunch in the garden, photo: Liz Gregg / Mood Board / Rex Features / East News
Finally, there is one more trend worth talking about: the epidemic of loneliness and declining social interactions triggered by the impact of social media, AI, and various social and political crises, is now considered a global health threat, and while its prominence may vary from country to country, a return to communal eating and being together around the table is something more than just a trend.
Traditional Polish weddings, family gatherings (like imieniny u cioci aka nameday at your auntie’s) and holidays (most of all: the Polish Wigilia, a good example of Intangible Cultural Heritage as understood by UNESCO) may sound a little bit old-fashioned in the everchanging world of Tik Tok, yet they are an essential part of our culture and should not be forgotten but cherished. Whether it’s the family you were born into or your family of choice, the spirit of a Polish biesiada (a feast or a banquet) where everybody eats, drinks and is merry, can be an antidote to loneliness – and much more than just a trend.