Tak Tak
May 24, 2017
Karol Kasierski: "In Poland, vegetarian means fish."
When you ask Karol Kasierski whether he feels more German or more Polish, he has to take some time to consider the question. He was born in Poland, grew up in Germany, and visited Poland frequently during his summer vacations to see his grandmother and grandfather - but he studied in Germany, and so on, and so on. Either way, the restaurateur is now firmly rooted in Berlin, where he has operated a Polish deli on Brunnenstrasse since 2015. That's Tak Tak. Since Polish cuisine is very heavy on meat, Karol, who actually studied marketing, experiments in his kitchen to be able to offer the Berlin crowd vegan and vegetarian variations
Tak Tak in Berlin's Mitte district
It was during a trip back to Poland that Karol Kasierski got the idea to start his Polish fast food restaurant, the Polish deli Tak Tak, in Berlin's central district.
Żurek (Sour rye soup)
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 2 glasses żurek (fermented rye flour)
- 1.5 l water
- 200 ml white wine
- 4 Polish white sausages
- 300 g bacon
- 2 eggs, hard boiled
- 60 g dried wild mushrooms
- 400 g potatoes
- 200 g carrots
- 100 g celery
- 2 onions
- 4 garlic cloves
- 6 bay leaves
- 2 t marjoram
- Salt and pepper
Preparation:
Soften dried mushrooms in lukewarm water. Dice vegetables, garlic, onions, and bacon. Then sauté bacon and onions. Add diced vegetables and garlic, sauté briefly, and deglaze with white wine.
Add water and dried mushrooms, and bring to a boil together with remaining spices. Pierce white sausage multiple times with a fork from both sides and add to simmering soup. Cook for five minutes, then remove. Cut sausage into slices and add to soup again. Stir in two glasses of żurek and simmer for around ten minutes at low heat. Stir occasionally. Slice hard-boiled egg in half. To serve, place egg in soup dish and ladle soup over the top.
Tak Tak - Polish deli
Brunnenstraße 5
10119 Berlin
Tel.: +49 1514 0432618