Surówka - Polish Cole Slaw

I love Surówka.  My kids do as well.  Surówka is a raw salad.  There are many varieties of Surówka, and all will say the name of the main ingredient.

This is the recipe for Surówka z białej kapusty, or Raw salad from white cabbage...  Polish Cole slaw.

Ingredients:

1/2 small head of White Cabbage
1 Carrot, washed and peeled
1 Apple*, washed and peeled
2-3 tablespoons Sunflower Oil
1-2 tablespoons Lemon Juice
1/2-1 tablespoon Sugar**
Salt and Pepper to taste


Optional:

Pinch of Caraway seeds
1/4 Sweet Onion





Grate the cabbage.  Sprinkle lightly with salt and squeeze together to make the cabbage more tender.

Grate the carrot and apple and mix into cabbage.  If using onion, grate and mix in.

Add remaining ingredients, stir together well and allow to sit in the refrigerator about an hour to allow the flavors to blend.




* I personally prefer using a Granny Smith apple for this but any apple will work, it will just affect the flavor to be more or less sweet.

** The sweeter the apple, the less sugar to use.



Smacznego...

Related Posts:

Chłodnik, A Cold Soup

Bean and Pickle Salad

Pickle Hamburgers

 

Polish Cold Carrot Salad

My husband just bought me a 20 lb. bag of carrots.  That is a lot of carrots.

So, I scoured my memory for several easy recipes to make.  I remembered a salad that came up very often on our table when I was a child and was almost always on restaurant tables with anything we would order while eating in Poland.

In Polish, it is called Surowka z Marchewki and means Cold Carrot Salad.

We even had this salad as part of my husband's first meal in Poland while on our honeymoon.

This salad is served cold, is very easy and inexpensive to make, and delicious. 

I wouldn't be a Mama if I didn't mention that eating carrots prevents night blindness, are high in Vitamin A and have some Vitamin C, Iron and Calcium in them as well.  Also, a diet high in fruits and especially vegetables significantly lowers your chances of diabetes, obesity, cancer, and all sorts of other health disorders and diseases.  Eat your vegetables!

Alright, Mama's ballad to carrots is over.  On to the recipe...


Ingredients:

4-6 Carrots, tops removed, washed and peeled
1 Apple, washed and peeled
Juice from 1/2 a Lemon
1 tablespoon of Sunflower Oil *
Sugar and Salt, to taste


Grate the Carrots and Apple.  Mix all ingredients together.

Serve cold.  It's that simple. 

Smacznego!



Notes:

This dish goes great with pork and is perfect for hot weather.

* In Poland and many European countries, sunflower oil is used as often as "vegetable" (soybean) oil is here in the USA.  You can substitute with "vegetable" oil, if you like.  I usually buy my sunflower oil in the Polish or European stores since I like to try to avoid soy and corn as much as possible.

"Busia's" Mizeria or Cucumber Salad

My husband's grandmother, who liked to be called "Buzia", woud always make this family favorite for special occasions, Cucumber Salad.  It is a different version of the Mizeria I grew up with but it is still delicious and I felt it was worthy of sharing with others. 

As the days start warming up and Lent is nearing it's end, such recipes are welcome additions to the Easter Table, picnics, and warm weather days.  Because I am becoming very impatient for winter to end, I am starting to make such dishes off and on, to remind myself that summer is coming.



Ingredients:

3 Cucumbers (I used 2 European Cucumbers instead this time)
Salt
2-4 tablespoons Sour Cream
1-2 Chives or 1/2 small Sweet Onion, diced finely
Salt, Pepper, Sugar and White or Apple Vinegar to taste


Peel cucumbers, if you like *.  Depending on your family's preference, you might julienne, dice in 1/2" to 1" cubes, or slice thinly using a mandolin slicer.

In a dish, layer cucumbers with pinch of salt between layers.  Allow to sit for 1/2 hour to an hour so that the salt can draw out the moisture from the cucumbers. 

In a colander, rinse under cold water well, squeezing cucumbers to remove extra moisture (I don't squeeze them, but this is how "Buzia" did it).

In a bowl, combine the Sour Cream with the Pepper, Sugar, and Vinegar.  Mix with Cucumbers. 

Taste to see if any Salt is needed.  Serve with bread and Chicken or Pork.

Smacznego!

* If cucumbers tend to upset your stomach, peel and also remove seeds,as this works for some people.