Polski rosół - Polish broth

Key takeaway

• In Poland, 'rosół' is served mainly with 'nitki' noodles (similar to cut lingini or filini), boiled potatoes or poured dumplings.
• The name “rosół” comes from the former names 'rozsół' or 'rozsol' (salt solution).
• The oldest Polish cookbook containing a recipe for broth is 'Compendium ferculorum, i.e. a collection of dishes' by Stanisław Czerniecki. It also includes 15 ways to serve the broth.
• The broth should cook for 4-4.5 hours for beef or 3.5 hours for poultry. If mixed, poultry meat can be added later.

Introduction

Broth (rosół in polish) is one of the most popular soups not only in Poland. Almost every region of the world has its own style and way of cooking. However, most of them differ in additions and cooking time. But, the base remains similar.

Preparing the broth is quite time-consuming and involves cooking the meat with an appropriate set of vegetables. But, the Polish version has something about it that encourages you to try it.

Everyone knows broth as chicken soup. However, this is not the case in Poland. We can distinguish several types of broths soups:

• beef broth soup - here the main base is beef, which gives the broth a darker color.
• mixed beef and poultry broth soup - the base is a mixture of beef and poultry. As poultry meat, we can find here chicken, duck or pheasant.
• poultry broth soup - the base here is chicken, duck or pheasant meat.

It is most often served with 'nitki' noodles or boiled potatoes. There are also versions served with poured dumplings or other pasta. It all depends on the region in Poland.

Broth is also the basis for preparing many other soups in Poland, such as krupnik, vegetable soup or beetroot borscht.

How was Polish broth was created?

The broth was created as a result of long-term cooking of meat in water. In ancient times, meat was preserved by salting and drying. Such a decoction was formerly called 'rozsół' or 'rozsol' (salt solution). This is where the current name comes from.

The first written recipe for Polish broth can be found in one of the first Polish cookbooks published in 1682. It was called 'Compendium ferculorum, or a collection of dishes' by Stanisław Czerniecki. There is the following recipe for 'Polish broth':

"The Polish way of cooking broth is as follows: take beef or veal meat, hazel grouse or partridge, pigeons and any meat that may have been boiled for the broth, and all game. Soak it, salt it thoroughly and put it in a pot, let it steep, and when it has cooled down, strain the broth through a sieve and pour it with the meat, add parsley, butter, salt, and simmer. And when it's ready, bring it hot to the table."
Translated from 'Compendium ferculorum, i.e. a collection of dishes' by Stanisław Czerniecki

The author of this work also included a list of ways to serve broths:

• Piece of deer or saddle for broth, beef or fallow deer etc.
• Beef or buffalo meat with peas or Turkish multipeas for broth
• Broth with croutons dipped in eggs
• Broth with dried croutons
• Broth with figatelles or meatballs
• Broth with caplon sausages
• Broth with various Italian and Polish pasta
• Broth with processed peas
• Broth with rice or various grains
• Broth with sorrel
• Broth with green wine or gooseberries
• Broth with menestra
• Broth with cleaver bread dough
• Broth with veal kidney dumplings
• Broth with pork fat
• Broth with all garden things

We can also find a reference to broth in another Polish-language book published in 1783 (revised edition in 1786). Its author, Wojciech Wiełądko, in his work "The Perfect Chef" states:

"Once you have removed the meat well, add salt to your broth, i.e. potash. Put various peeled and rinsed vegetables in a pot. This would include celery, onions, carrots, parsnips or parsley, cabbage leeks. Cook slowly until completely cooked. "
Translated from 'The Perfect Chef' by Wojciech Wiełądko

This book, however, is largely a translation from French books. It can therefore be assumed that the work of Stanisław Czerniecki, who was the chef of the Krakow voivode, is a more reliable source.

During the times of the Polish People's Republic, broth became so popular that it became the Sunday soup of almost every family.

How to prepare a delicious broth?

To prepare a tasty and aromatic broth, start cooking the ingredients with cold water, slowly bringing to a light boil. This method of cooking means that most of the ingredients contained in meat and vegetables are transferred to the broth. First, cook the meat itself to release the fat. In the meantime, you can collect the scum, although some say it takes away the flavor of the meat. Either way, the scum should be strained at the very end when the broth is ready.

When the scum stops appearing after about an hour, you can slightly remove the broth from the heat. The fatty part of the broth will then separate on the surface and the remnants will sink to the bottom. This fatness is called 'gilding' in some areas. If we don't like too much fat, we can remove some of it.

Tip: After standing for a while, some people pour off the upper part and also transfer the meat. Leftovers remain at the bottom. However, this is not a rule and in most cases it is enough to strain the broth at the very end.

At this point, add vegetables such as carrots, parsley or celery. Onion roasted on a fire or on a baking tray is also added to this broth. This gives it an amazing flavor.

The broth should be cooked for 4-4.5 hours, never more than that, always on low heat. If the type of meat is soft (veal, duck or chicken pieces) - 3.5 hours. enough. If it is a beef and chicken broth, you can add the poultry meat a little later. This will prevent the beef from being still tough and the poultry from being overcooked.

Before serving, set the broth off the heat for a moment to clarify. After this time, you can strain it or serve it by pouring it gently from the top layer.