Oscypek: What Is the Smoked Cheese of Zakopane?

What the rules say

Oscypek has been registered under the European Union Protected Designation of Origin since 14 February 2008. It must be made from at least 60% sheep's milk, must weigh between 600 and 800 g and must measure between 17 and 23 cm. Cow or goat milk cannot exceed 40 percent.

The cheese is formed and salted by hand and smoked over coniferous wood smoke. A cheese that fails the criteria must be sold as serki góralskie, which means Highland cheese.

Names to know

Cheese that does not qualify is sold as serki góralskie, Highland cheese. A similar cheese is made in the Slovak Tatra Mountains under the name oštiepok. It is a cousin, not the same product, so the Polish name stays tied to the Polish side of the range.

How to spot the real one

Check the size first. Big oscypki, shaped like a spindle, are the only size protected by the EU. Small ones are oval and medium ones are shaped like a barrel.

A mature cheese weighs 600 to 800 grams, and Slow Food puts its diameter at eight or nine centimetres. Check the season next. The cheese is made from May to September only and may be purchased until the end of October, according to Into Poland.

A stall with plenty of fresh cheese outside that window deserves a question. Check the label last. Ask whether it is oscypek or serki góralskie.

Why it tastes the way it does

BBC Travel describes oscypek as much sharper, brinier and smokier than other cheeses. It credits the high sheep's milk content and the process of first scalding, then smoking the cheese. The sheep graze outside from May to September and are milked twice a day.

Making 1 kg of cheese takes six to seven litres of milk.

A related word

For oscypek itself, ask the person at the counter. A short question also tells you whether they know their product.

From milk to smoke

The forms go into a brine-filled barrel for a night or two. Then they are placed close to the roof in a special wooden hut and cured in hot smoke for up to 14 days. The smoke comes from coniferous wood.

Making 1 kg takes six to seven litres of milk. The Oscypek Festival, organised in summer in Zakopane, is a chance to see the traditional production.

The process in six steps

Each step below comes from the published description of the protected recipe.

A protected name, not a ban

Under the EU designation, a cheese that does not fit the criteria must be sold as serki góralskie. That is the whole restriction. The real oscypek stays on sale in the Tatra region, and Slow Food lists a producer, Andrzej Zubek of Basutzka near Ratulow, whose cheeses are sold on Thursdays at the Nowy Targ farmers' market.

Places and checks

Slow Food names Andrzej Zubek as a producer whose cheeses are sold on Thursdays at the Nowy Targ farmers' market. Krupówki sells local products from all over the Podhale region, so ask each seller for the weight and the legal name. If you cannot reach the market, a guided day out is an alternative.

The Krakow-Zakopane: Cable Car, Chocholow Baths, Cheese and Vodka costs $24 per person and lasts 11 hours. The title names a cheese and vodka tasting. The listing does not say which cheese is served, so ask the guide.

The Gubałówka day trip costs $20 per person and lasts 9 hours.

Serving ideas

Cut it into slices of about half an inch and grill until golden. Serve immediately with a dollop of cranberry jam. Oscypek is often pan-fried and served with cranberry jam, called żurawina, on the side.

BBC Travel says it also goes well with lingonberry preserve, another Podhale delicacy. Slow Food says oscypek is usually served in thin slices with wine, vodka or beer, and that it is also excellent grilled.