Kielbasa
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kielbasa is a Polish word for traditional Polish sausage. The word has become a commonly used North American term for Eastern European styles of sausage, including Ukrainian sausage, which is called kovbasa or kubasa.
The term entered English simultaneously from different sources, which accounts for the different spellings. In the United States, the form kielbasa (usually pronounced /kiːlˈbɑːsə/ or /kɪlˈbɑ:sə/) is more often used and comes from the Polish kiełbasa pronounced [kʲewˈbasa] listen "sausage", in turn from Turkic külbastı "grilled cutlet" [1]). In New Jersey and most areas of Greater New York City, the Czech pronunciation, or possibly a derivative of the Polish word is used, and is usually pronounced "ke-bah-see" or "keu-bah-sah." In Canada, the forms more often used are kovbasa or kubasa, usually pronounced /ˈkʌbɑsɑ/ from the Ukrainian ковбаса kovbasa /kovbɑsɑ/ "sausage".
Sausage is a staple of Polish cuisine and comes in dozens of varieties, smoked or fresh, but almost always based on pork (although in many areas, it is available in beef, and sometimes in turkey, horse, lamb, even bison), every region having its own speciality. Popular varieties include:
- kabanosy, a thin, air-dried sausage flavoured with caraway seed, originally made of horsemeat (but today usually pork or turkey)
- krakowska, a thick, straight sausage hot-smoked with pepper and garlic; its name comes from Kraków
- wiejska (pronounced in Polish /ˈvʲejska/), a large U-shaped pork and veal sausage with marjoram and garlic; its name means "a country one"
In the U.S., "kielbasa" almost always means some form of wiejska (although often not U-shaped and seldom containing veal), which may be unsmoked ("fresh") or fully or partly smoked. Similar sausages are found in other Slavic nations as well, notably the Czech Republic (spelled "klobás") and Slovakia (spelled "klobása"). In Ukraine "kovbasa" is properly pronounced /kovbɑsɑ/, but in English is usually pronounced /ˈkʌbɑsɑ/.
Original kielbasa is also called "Polska kiełbasa" for "Polish Sausage" or "Kielbasa Starowiejska" known as "Old Country Style Sausage". This one comes closest to what is generally known in America as "kielbasa" (Polish sausage, Polska Kiełbasa). Nowadays, many major meat packers across America offer a product called "kielbasa," but it is usually a far cry from the real thing.
Real kielbasa uses only the choicest cuts of tender pork, and often a little beef or veal is added to improve its body and character. The sausage is seasoned with fresh herbs and spices and then gently smoked, just long enough to achieve the right color, flavor and aroma. It is good for breakfast or supper as a cold cut with horseradish or mustard.
In Poland, kielbasa is traditionally served with fried onions, red horseradish (which is blended with beets), and pierogies, which are crescent-shaped dumplings filled with potato, cheese or mushrooms. Kielbasa can be served hot — boiled, baked or grilled. It can be cooked in soups (such as biały barszcz, kapuśniak, or grochówka), baked with sauerkraut, or added to bean dishes, stews (notably bigos, the Polish national dish), and casseroles.
A less widely available variety of kielbasa is the White Fresh (biała), which is sold uncooked and unsmoked, then usually boiled or cooked in a soup in place of a typical meat.
A wiejska recipe can be found at the Wikimedia Cookbook.
[edit] Trivia
- Howard Stern invited "Kielbasa Queen" Althea Cassidy (appearing as "Denise Miller") on his Channel 9 show to demonstrate her ability to swallow and disgorge a whole 12-inch kielbasa. Cassidy appeared again as the "Kielbasa Queen" (this time under the name "Donna Porter") in Stern's semi-autobiographical film Private Parts. She has since appeared several times on Stern's E! Network show.
- Kiełbasa is the name of a rap musician from Poland.
- In the computer game Space Quest 6, "Kelibasa" is the name of a lion-derived anthropomorphic starship commander.
- A Polish sausage named Stosh Jonjak races around the field after the sixth inning of Milwaukee Brewers home games. It competes against the other Klement's Racing Sausages, which include also a hot dog, bratwurst, and an Italian sausage. A chorizo will join them in 2007.
- A local long-time TV celebrity in Cleveland, Chuck Schodowski, assumed the moniker "Kielbasa Kid" for several skits he produced with partner Lil' John for The Big Chuck and Lil' John Show.
- At Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, "Bull's BBQ", run by former Phillie Greg Luzinski, offers a kielbasa sandwich known as the "Bull Dog".
- The city of Chicopee, Massachusetts held a kielbasa fest annually until the early 1990s. At this event, the world's largest kielbasa was unveiled.
- The world's largest replica of a kielbasa is a roadside attraction in Mundare, Alberta, Canada.
- In addition to being the name of a sausage, Kovbasa was also the name of a Soviet sniper who, during the Battle of Stalingrad, used fake white flags to deceive Germans who rose out of their trenches to take a better look at it. Kovbasa would treacherously shoot them when they came out of cover.
- During World War II, the Nazis sought to rename the Kielbasa, attempting to "Germanize" it, by renaming it Kolbascy, which is actually a corruption of Kolbasky. This name was never used outside Nazi Germany.
