POLISH   CONNECTIONS

I took a sample of the wide selection of products that you can find at the deli. 

 

There are many breads from baguettes to buns of all sorts. There are large loafs and small round buns, which are baked in Toronto. The assortment of breads and buns are important because some of the breads such as specific sorts of rye bread are not available in regular grocery stores, only Polish stores like Polka. Bread is one of the important foods consumed in Poland.

 

The buns pictured adjacent are small round and have a yellowish colour. They are firm but not crusty or hard. They have a chewy texture and a slightly sour dough taste. They cost $2.50 for 6. They smell fresh and doughy. 

 

There are a variety of different cold cut meats available at the deli from beef, ham, chicken and smoked turkey cold cuts. In addition, there are chicken and pork baked patay. They also sell different cheeses such as smoked cheddar and provolone.  These cheeses and cold cuts are usually eaten in sandwiches. They are produced in Ontario. A lot of the cheeses and meats smell smokey. As described in the oral histories section under the who and why tab, cold cuts and cheeses produced in the Polish style are desired by Polish diaspora customers as it reminds them of the food they used to eat back home in Poland. Furthermore, they cannot get these kinds of meats or selection in bigger generic grocery stores. Meat especially pork is important to Polish culture and is eaten regularly.

 

A package of polendwica pork cold cuts are shown in the picture adjacent. It costs $19.99 for 0.310kg and was picked up at the deli. They are pale pink in colour almost salmon coloured and smell smokey. They smell like any other ham.

 

There is also horseradish sauce produced in Poland using a traditional Polish recipe. It is sold in jars for $1.99. The sauce is opaque and white in colour. It has a bitter and spicy taste. It is traditionally spread on bread and consumed, usually in a sandwich with meat and/or cheese. Ingredients include horseradish, canola oil, vinegar, powdered milk, citric acid, guar gum, potassium sorbate, sulphites, sugar and salt. The cultural significance of horseradish sauce is it is a traditional sauce used in Poland. This particular sauce jar was imported from Poland.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sauerkraut & Mushroom Pierogies are produced in Mississauga. They are sold in green plastic bags for $3.29 each, which are in the freezer section of the Polka Deli. To prepare the frozen pierogies, one boils them and sometimes fries them on the stove in oil afterwards. They are slightly chewy and sour. They have no odour until cooked, which results in a fried odour. These white coloured doughy dumplings are made out of enriched flour, sauerkraut (cabbage and salt), water, mushrooms, canola oil, and/or soya oil, onion, salt and spices.

 

Pierogies are probably the most notable food from Poland. There are many varieties sold at the deli, even ones made with meat or fruit. Pierogies are consumed by many in Poland and are found at every Polish restaurant or grocery store in the Greater Toronto Area; they can even be found at bigger Canadian grocery stores now. The cultural significance of the pierogi is that it has a historic value, it is a food that has been around in Poland since the 13th century. There is even a Pierogi Festival in Kraków, Poland. Historically, they have different types of pierogies on special occasions, for instance, they eat cabbage, sauerkraut, and mushroom pierogies on Christmas Eve.

 

The cheddar cheese and potato pierogies are sold in similar packing for the same price and are found in the same freezer section as the other ones. They have an orange plastic bag packing them. They are cooked in the same manner. They taste slightly dry on their own and have a slight salty taste to them. They taste cheesy. They have no odour until they are fried, which gives them a fried odour. These pierogies are made out of enriched flour, potatoes, water, cheddar cheese (milk, bacterial culture, enzymes, why, natural colour), canola and/or soy oil, salt, onions and spices.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Huslanka is soured milk. In Poland, people make it at home by leaving milk out to sour and then refrigerating it. It has the texture of yogurt and look of yogurt. It is white in colour.

 

This particular brand, MC Dairy is produced in Etobicoke. It costs $2.79. It tastes like a slightly sourer yogurt. It has a slightly sour odour like yogurt. Its ingredients are pasteurized fresh whole milk, skim milk powder and a bacterial culture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kabanos Sausage produced in Mississauga. Sold at the deli. These thin, narrow sausages are reddish orange in colour on the outside and lighter salmon pink on the inside. They taste slightly spicy. They have a dry and chewy texture like jerky. They are sold in the deli/fresh produce section along with cold cuts. They are pre-cooked like the cold cuts and are eaten alone as they are. They smell similar to pepperoni, smokey and meaty. They cost $3.46 for 4 sausages. This sort of sausage is only found in Poland or at Polish stores such as Polka deli. It is a  air-dried sausage with caraway seed and was originally made of pork in Poland. The cultural significance is it is something that is consumed in Poland regularly.

 

 

Prince Polo XXL chocolate bars sold in classic dark chocolate cost $0.99 at Polka. They are dark chocolate covered and layered wafers in metallic gold wrappers. There are other flavours such as milk chocolate (blue wrapper) and the original size Prince Polo bars. These chocolate bars are not too sweet and are light in addition to crunchy. It is a well-known Polish-produced chocolate bar sold in Poland and in many other countries since 1955. 

 

 

 

 

 

References:

http://www.polskafoods.com/polish-food/facts-history-about-pierogi 

 

http://www.everyculture.com/No-Sa/Poland.html