Is Polish food still more natural than in the West?

♂

Sep 6, 10, 15:53 #1

You hear about Germans crossing the border to do their food shopping in Poland not only because it's cheaper but also praising the superior flavour and natrualness of the bread, sausage and other products, and many Americans coming for ther first time seem do likewise. My impression is that Polish food has deterioated in the fake-food direction (less natural raw materials, more dough improvers, synthetic aromas, flavour-enhancers, soybean fillers in processed meats, elrs, etc.) compared to 20, 10 even five years ago. The 'gorący kubek' is a prime example of a food product that is mostly chemicals. Perhaps Poland may still be trailing behind the US and Western Europe in that regard, so by comparison Polish food may appear more natural. Any ideas on this?

AussieSheilaThreads: 6 Posts: 113 Joined: Aug 14, 10 ♀	Sep 6, 10, 15:58 #2
No, the meat you eat in Poland are mostly processed meat which I think is unhealthy. Fresh seafood is also non-existent in Poland.

southernThreads: 116 Posts: 10,955 Joined: May 17, 07 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 16:00 #3
AussieSheila: No, the meat you eat in Poland are mostly processed meat which I think is unhealthy. We know that nothing can be compared to Mc Donald's.

♀

Edited by: Magdalena Sep 6, 10, 16:03 #4

Polonius3:

even five years ago

Are you serious?! There was never more sawdust in the bread and water in the milk than during the good ol' Commie days. Additives and preservatives are not newfangled notions to the Polish food industry either. You seem to have this weird image of Poland as a sort of unspoilt peasant country inhabited by a simple-minded, good-natured folk dressed in old-fashioned garb and subsisting on milk, honey, and bread. Wake up! Communism was not a time capsule, if anything, in many ways it forcibly propelled us far ahead of the "West" (e.g. employment of women, eradication of social classes, percentage of women in higher education, etc).

♂

Sep 6, 10, 16:08 #5

You can process meat (cure, smoke, season, cook, etc.) without pumping it full of soybean solution to make it expand and produce 3 lbs of processed meat from 1 lb of fresh meat. Ever taste a cheap Polish wiener? If you leave it in boiling water a bit too long it'll swell to 2-3 tiems its size but have no flavour whatsoever.
But back to my original question: Is the stuff sold in Germany, the UK and elsewhere in Europe even worse amd more fake-foody than what there is in Poland? Otherwise why do so many westerners rave about Polish food's alleged natrualness?

♂

Edited by: Teffle Sep 6, 10, 16:08 #6

AussieSheila:

No, the meat you eat in Poland are mostly processed meat which I think is unhealthy.

At the risk of agreeing with AS, this was my experience too.

In Poland when you say "meat" it seems to generally refer to processed/preserved sliced meats or sausage.

In Britain/Ireland meat means meat - fresh slabs of animal flesh, not processed not cured.

Also, high proportion of pickled stuff in Poland which isn't healthy either.

The 'gorący kubek' is a prime example of a food product that is mostly chemicals. Perhaps Poland may still be trailing behind the US and Western Europe in that regard, so by comparison Polish food may appear more natural.

You sir, are having one almighty laugh surely?

Otherwise why do so many westerners rave about Polish food's alleged natrualness?

I've never once heard this said about Polish food. Sure, I've heard people say they like it, they love it (or sometimes that they don't like it) but it's so-called "naturalness" was never a reason. Maybe to someone who exists almost only on junk food.

MEMBER ♂

Sep 6, 10, 16:59 #7

AussieSheila:

No, the meat you eat in Poland are mostly processed meat which I think is unhealthy. Fresh seafood is also non-existent in Poland.

Says the lady that spent 9 days in Poland of her entire life, and one that was disappointed at the beach because there wasn't any waves.

You're just a Poland hater.

Teffle:

In Poland when you say "meat" it seems to generally refer to processed/preserved sliced meats or sausage.

Ohh and heres another one that spent what..... 6 days?

Don't know what your beloved Polish friends were serving you but thats not what i eat and i eat a lot of meat.

I think one of the ares where Polish meat excels is the amount of cured and marinated hams, you are truly spoiled for choice.

saschaThreads: 13 Posts: 3,851 Joined: Jun 10, 10 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 17:07 #8
Teffle: In Britain/Ireland meat means meat - fresh slabs of animal flesh, not processed not cured. U seem to forget the mad cow disease... ;-) and pls stop dreaming.

THE HITMANThreads: 1 Posts: 416 Joined: Jun 15, 10 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 17:07 #9
The good natural foods in Poland are in decline due to EU policies, soon it will be as bad as anywhere else in europe. Plus in order to make ends meet, livestock farming conditions have also deteriorated. Pity we can,t go back to the old ways, sometimes old methods are better than the new.

jonniThreads: 26 Posts: 4,181 Joined: Nov 27, 07 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 17:09 #10
Wroclaw Boy: I think one of the ares where Polish meat excels is the amount of cured and marinated hams, you are truly spoiled for choice. Yes and no. There's a huge choice, and the best of it is excellent. But the worst, and even the mid-market stuff is truly unhealthy.

TeffleThreads: 28 Posts: 2,105 Joined: Aug 26, 10 ♂	Edited by: Teffle Sep 6, 10, 17:09 #11
Wroclaw Boy: I think one of the ares where Polish meat excels is the amount of cured and marinated hams, you are truly spoiled for choice Hmmm...something wrong with this statement. ; ) pls stop dreaming In what sense?

ShawnHThreads: 9 Posts: 3,056 Joined: Jul 2, 09 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 17:12 #12
Teffle: Hmmm...something wrong with this statement. ; ) I don't think so. There is a difference between "processed" meat and cured / marinated meats. Processed foods are high in preservatives, msg, chemicals, filler, water, etc. I wouldn't call a nice polewica or proscuitto processed...

inkrakow	Sep 6, 10, 17:13 #13
Teffle: Also, high proportion of pickled stuff in Poland which isn't healthy either. Are you joking? There's plenty of research that shows that pickled and fermented foods are amazingly good for you.

aphrodisiacThreads: 22 Posts: 3,998 Joined: Apr 15, 09 ♀	Sep 6, 10, 17:15 #14
inkrakow: There's plenty of research that shows that pickled and fermented foods are amazingly good for you. true. Great for digestion among other things.

♂

Edited by: Teffle Sep 6, 10, 17:17 #15

So the "cured" stuff referred to is purely cured and is not processed?

If so, I take it back but I doubt it.

Look, I'm not complaining - I like Polish food generally but I just don't know where this mad myth that Polish food is natural and healthy comes from.

And as for this statement:

The 'gorący kubek' is a prime example of a food product that is mostly chemicals. Perhaps Poland may still be trailing behind the US and Western Europe in that regard, so by comparison Polish food may appear more natural

C'mon. Please. It's mostly chemicals but still appears more natural to the poor synthetic mouthed westerners ?!

There's plenty of research that shows that pickled and fermented foods are amazingly good for you

Probably. And even more research that shows it's bad for you in large quantities I'll warrant.

That u have the only privilege to eat unprocessed meat on ur island.

Well, I didn't say that.

saschaThreads: 13 Posts: 3,851 Joined: Jun 10, 10 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 17:19 #16
Teffle: pls stop dreaming In what sense? That u have the only privilege to eat unprocessed meat on ur island. Maybe from known sources, like everywhere but in masses, no.

jonniThreads: 26 Posts: 4,181 Joined: Nov 27, 07 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 17:24 #17
inkrakow: Are you joking? There's plenty of research that shows that pickled and fermented foods are amazingly good for you. And huge rates of stomach cancer in central and eastern Europe - basically in Europe's wędliny and ogórki belt.

recoilThreads: - Posts: 32 Joined: Jan 31, 09 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 17:59 #18
jonni: And huge rates of stomach cancer in central and eastern Europe - basically in Europe's wędliny and ogórki belt. Corellation does not imply causation. "With a decrease in the number of pirates, there has been an increase in global warming over the same period. Therefore, global warming is caused by a lack of pirates."

welshguyinpolaThreads: 32 Posts: 462 Joined: Jan 9, 08 ♂	Sep 6, 10, 18:14 #19
Where Poland is severly lacking are good steaks. When a butcher here receives a nice piece of beef he mauls it until its a shadow of its former self. I shall be going home for a visit soon and first stop steak house.

MEMBER ♂

Edited by: Wroclaw Boy Sep 6, 10, 18:20 #20

Teffle:

There's plenty of research that shows that pickled and fermented foods are amazingly good for you

Probably. And even more research that shows it's bad for you in large quantities I'll warrant.

No body's going to eat a plate full of gherkins though, its a side dish along with other preserved/pickled varieties.

What about salads, they are amazing all kinds of different varieties, in the UK its lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber period for a side, boring as hell and tasteless.

welshguyinpola:

Where Poland is severly lacking are good steaks.

Very true the same with lamb, its not the butchers fault with beef, i commented in another thread i think its associated with the lack of hanging. Fillets is still great as it should be for the price, 70 - 100 PLN / KG, still cheap by Western standards. Lamb is just non existent.