Wloszczyzna – Włoszczyzna (spot the difference)
Wloszczyzna is a mixture of vegetables used as a base for soups, stews, and other dishes. It is similar to the French mirepoix or the Italian soffritto, and is an essential ingredient in many Polish kitchen dishes. It’s nothing fancy though. In Britain you call it jus stewing veg 🙂
The legend has it that that term came into the Polish language with an XVIth century Queen Of Poland – Bona Sforza, who was Italian and brought many traditional cooking habits from the Appenine peninsula to the Polish court. Roughly translating that term means simply Italian.
Use in traditional cooking.
The exact composition of włoszczyzna may vary depending on the region and personal preferences, but it typically includes carrots, celery, parsley root, leeks, and onions. Other common additions may include parsnips, celeriac, and garlic.
In Polish kitchen, włoszczyzna is often used as a base for soups, such as the popular żurek (sour rye soup) and barszcz (beetroot soup). It is also added to stews and sauces, providing a rich and flavorful base. Włoszczyzna is also used in traditional dishes such as bigos (hunter’s stew) and gołąbki (stuffed cabbage rolls).
Włoszczyzna can be purchased pre-packaged in Polish grocery stores, but many home cooks prefer to make their own mixture using fresh vegetables. It can also be frozen for later use, making it a convenient ingredient in the Polish kitchen.
Dried “wloszczyzna” veg alternative for busy people
There are a couple of ready dried veg mixtures on the market but most of them are powdered which doesn’t have the same effect as it is in traditional cooking when you put big chunks of veg into your pot. The alternative I offer here and use daily is a dried mix of finely cut vegetables very popular in every Polish kitchen. They are big enough to preserve most of the quality of fresh ingredients but convenient to store long term and use effortlessly while needed. An example of use here and, of course a link to my shop as well 🙂