When I moved to Maryland from Michigan, I really missed the European and special ethnic foods and neighborhoods around Detroit. They have Pole Town/Hamtramck, Greek Town, many Hungarian restaurants, German biergartens in Bricktown and other areas, many Middle Eastern choices in Dearborn, etc. I found out after I moved here that the nearest Hungarian restaurant is in Philadelphia (I haven’t been there yet).
At least there’s a Russian grocery in Germantown and The Kielbasa Factory in Rockville. The Kielbasa factory is a tiny grocery and deli on the second floor of a two-story strip mall on Rockville Pike. Their kielbasa sandwich is their specialty, and when you go in there you quickly learn that kielbasa is not what you see in plastic wrap in the processed meat section of your supermarket.
Kielbasa comes in many varieties of primarily smoked or fresh cooked lean pork, but also beef, chicken, turkey, and/or veal. Every region of Poland has its own unique ingredients and recipes. The most popular are:
Kabanosy – a very thin air-dry smoked sausage
Kielbasa Szynkowa (shinkova) – a very thick smoked sausage made from ham
Kielbasa Krakowska (Krakow) – a thick, straight, hot-smoked sausage with garlic and pepper, a favorite of Polish Kings
Biala Kielbasa – a famous non-smoked fresh sausage traditionally used as an accompaniment to white borsch, a traditional Polish Easter soup
Kielbasa Starowiejska (staroveyska) “Old country style” – a smoked thin sausage made using a very old and traditional recipe
Kielbasa Wiejska (veyska) – a country style sausage shaped like a large U made primary from pork or pork and veal mix, with marjoram and garlic
Parowki (paroovki) – a Polish style hot dog primary made from veal or pork, served hot with horseradish.
Real kielbasa uses only the choices cuts of tender pork with a little beef or veal added to improve its body and character, no preservatives are typically added. The sausage is seasoned with fresh herbs and spices and then gently smoked, just long enough to achieve the right color, flavor, and aroma. In Poland, kielbasa is traditionally served with fried onions, plain or red horseradish (horseradish blended with beets), or mustard. It can be prepared in large or small pieces, fried together with onions and serve with rye bread or roll. It is served cold or hot at breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Besides the deli, the store has grocery shelves and freezers including pierogies, cheeses, jams, famous Polish pickle in brine, and Polish beer and wine. Their homemade foods are fresh, all natural, and preservative free. They also make “Pope Kremowka” – John Paul II’s favorite Puff Cake, and pastries like Paczki and Drozdzowki. By the way, Paczki Day (Fat Tuesday) was last week, February 17th. Paczki (I pronounce it poonch’-key) are jelly filled, powdered sugar covered donuts that you eat before giving them up for lent. Some of the neighborhoods with large Polish populations, like Chicago, make hundreds of thousands of Paczki each year for Paczki Day.
I picked up some stuffed cabbage, horseradish sauce, and tried the kielbasa sandwich. The sandwich usually comes with sauerkraut but I just got the spicy mustard – probably more mustard than I usually have in a year but … when in Rome (or Poland)…. The owner grew up in Poland the oldest sibling and her mother taught her Polish cooking and how to make all of the pickle brines and can fruits, vegetables, and sauces. The staff are super friendly and knowledgeable about the Polish and eastern European foods that they sell, how to prepare them, and they really love what they do.
