Background
Polish Sauerkraut Pasta has a rather royal heritage. Its origin was started by Polish-Lithuanian Queen Bona Sforza, wife of King Sigismund I the Old. Who in the 16th century, decided to bring new culinary fashions to Poland. The earliest record of the recipe can be found in Compendium ferculorum by Stanisław Czerniecki from 1682.
The inspiration hails from Italian culinary practices at the time. Łazanki is an old Polish interpretation of the word “Lasagne”, which was a well known square pasta type in Latin Speaking Europe at the time. Like most royal dishes, the recipe became gradually popular with common Poles. Eventually evolving to a grandmothers favourite for the last 200 or so years.
Its first recipes used bread ovens to bake, instead of pans. It also included different meats like Veal and Goose for ingredients. Over the years cheaper ingredients became common, especially for different regions in Poland. I’ve chosen not to use the old-fashioned recipe as its a little over complicated for a start, taking almost 5 hours from start to finish.
The recipe you will find below is the most common one in Poland for this dish. It still holds great traditional heritage, being in use for over 200 years and much more sensible to make in a normal kitchen.
Ingredients for Polish Sauerkraut Pasta
| – 250g (9 oz) of pasta (Ideally square shaped like Spaghetti Quadrati or Farfalle) – 200g (7 oz) of Kielbasa (pre-cooked Beef or Pork sausages will also work) – 400g (14 oz) of Sour Cabbage/Sauerkraut (weight after removing water content) – 2 large onions (around 250g/9 oz) – 150g (5.3 oz) of mushrooms – 100ml (3.5fl oz) of vegetable cooking oil – 2 Bay leaves – 1 Teaspoon of Salt & Pepper – 1/4 Teaspoon of Cumin – 1 Teaspoon of all spice (optional) |
Preparation
- Peel and finely chop the onions
- Drain and squeeze the Sour cabbage/Sauerkraut (you can rinse it before squeezing if you prefer a milder cabbage flavour)
- Wash and chop the Mushrooms
Method for Polish Sauerkraut Pasta
Cook the Cabbage
In a large cooking pot. Place the Sour Cabbage in with two cups of water. Before adding the bay leaves and 1 teaspoon of all spice. Cover the pot with a lid and cook on medium heat for around 30 minutes or until the cabbage is soft.
When its done, drain the water and place it in a bowl to cool down. Once its cool enough to handle safely, remove the bay leaves and squeeze out any remaining water content. Before chopping and setting it aside for use later.
Fry It Up
While the Cabbage is cooking. Pre-heat a large frying pan to medium high, before adding the 100ml (3.5fl oz) of Vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot, add the Onions and Mushrooms and fry for around 15 minutes (until the onion is starting to brown and the mushrooms have shrunk).
Once they are ready, add the pre-cooked sausage to that same pan and cook for another 10 minutes on medium heat. If the onion or mushrooms are cooking too quick feel free to reduce the heat to medium-low.
After 10 minutes, add the previously squeezed/chopped cabbage. Season with 1 teaspoon of Salt and Pepper and 1/4 teaspoon of Cumin. Before frying for another 15 minutes while mixing thoroughly.
Cook the Pasta & Mix
While your waiting for the ingredients in the frying pan. Boil the 250g (9 oz) of dry pasta according to the package instructions. Once its ready, drain it then cover with a lid so its ready for mixing.
Once the cabbage is finished frying. Mix the cooked pasta in and mix again thoroughly. Taste test and and more seasoning if required.
Serving
Łazanki is traditionally served as an independent dish. However, serving with Pickles or buttered farmers bread is a common side.
Storage
If refrigerated in a food safe, airtight container within an hour of cooking. Up to 3 days should be possible for storage.