7 Tried-and-Tested Polish Hangover Cures That Actually Work!

It’s a Saturday “morning” and you wake up pretty late. Your head is pounding, your mouth is as dry as the Sahara desert, and a strong feeling of regret and self-pity hits you like a train. As you stand up sometime later and walk to the mirror, you see your eyes as red as a ripe tomato.

One question arises above all others: “What the hell happened last night?”

After a moment of though, you realize that you are not going to answer that question any time soon. You need to make your life less miserable first.

“How do I fix my poor wrecked body?”

To answer that question, I made some research. I asked my Polish friends about all the tricks and tips they could think of. It turned out that centuries of vodka drinking produced quite a few insane hangover cures, many of which work wonders…

Of course, the best thing is to “prevent and to drink responsibly”. But this article is not going to be about that. As a Polish saying states:

‘Human is not a camel – he has to drink’ .

As a consequence, human also has to deal with hangovers.

This is how Poles cure their hangovers:

1) Kefir

Kefir is a fermented milk drink rich in vitamin B, folic acid, and easily digestible proteins. It has lots of nice bacteria that really help in calming down your stomach. It can be drunk by all of you who are lactose intolerant because the lactose becomes lactic acid during fermentation.

Kefir definitely is an acquired taste. Most of you who taste it for the first time will find it very weird. It gets much better with time. Try it out, but better if you don’t have a hangover the first time that you taste it.

Taste: 7

Positive Effects: 9

Negative Consequences: 0

2) Pickled cucumbers ( or sour cabbage) juice

They are full of vitamin C, electrolytes and water. All the stuff your body needs to get rehydrated and expel the toxins. The juice from pickled cucumber and sour cabbage contains another substance which fights the hangover symptoms: the succinic acid. The succinic acid accelerates the decomposition process of the acetaldehyde, which causes some of the symptoms of the hangover.

It might be the novelty and the oddness of this method, but I have to say that I felt a bit better after a shot of pickled cucumber juice. The tough part is to push yourself to drink it when you already feel so terrible! If you have a very sensitive stomach it might not be the best idea!

An alternative, which I still have to try, is to drink pickle juice as a chaser for vodka.

Taste: 4

Positive Effects: 8

Negative Consequences: 3

3) “Klin Klinem”

“Chiodo scaccia chiodo”,  “Hair of the dog”, “Un clavo saca otro clavo”,  “reparationsbajer”,  “迎え酒”… It seems there is a way to say this in every language on the planet! So I guess it works:)

But what does “klin klinem” actually mean? It means “to dislodge a wedge with a wedge” but it also means to drink a little shot of vodka or a small beer to fix your hangover.

Countless cultures use different variations of “klin klinem” and it has been proven to be quite effective in our test 😉 Do we recommend it?

NO!

Rather than reducing the symptoms, it POSTPONES them. Believe me, they will come back sooner or later.

Taste: it depends on what you drink

Positive Effects: 10

Negative Consequences: 10

4) Rosół (broth)

Rosół, or any other Polish soup which is based on it, contains Potassium, magnesium, calcium, vitamin E, A, beta carotene, and protein.

It’s tastier than the pickle juice and healthier than the “klin klinem” method, but does it work as well?

I have tried to eat Rosół and it definitely had some effects in calming the stomach.

Taste: 10

Positive Effects: 6

Negative Consequences: 0

5) Honey

Honey is not a traditional hangover cure in Poland but according to the nutritionists it should be one. Especially because Poland produces delicious honey and in huge quantities! You can find raw, traditional homemade honey in every single market in Poland.

But does it work? Honey contains Potassium (which helps with rehydration), fructose and antioxidants. I melted a couple of spoons in a tea. It worked a little, but maybe it was just the effect of the water of the tea.

Taste: 10+

Positive Effects: 5

Negative Consequences: 0

6) Scrambled eggs with kiełbasa

This is the obvious choice and perhaps my favorite. It’s the Polish variation of bacon and eggs, but with kiełbasa (Polish dry sausage) instead of bacon. It’s rich in fat, proteins, and happiness.

If you ever wake up on a couch after a Polish house party, chances are you will be offered this dish.

Does it work against the symptoms of a hangover? Nobody really cares, but I bet it does.

Taste: 10++

Positive Effects: Probably many.

Negative Consequences: 0

7) The 3Cs: cisza, ciemność, czas (silence, darkness, time)

Finally, the three Cs: cisza, ciemność, czas. The best solution is to close yourself in a dark silent room and wait. This might sound obvious because it is rooted deeply in our instincts. But it definitely deserves a place on the list: the effects are certain and rewarding every single time. Plus, it’s nice to remember thanks to the three Cs.

Taste: –

Positive Effects: ∞

Negative Consequences: 0

Conclusion

Do you have other tried and tested methods to fix hangovers? Do you know more Polish “fixes”? Do you have some particular cure which is absolutely funny or incredibly disgusting? I’d sincerely love to hear all about it! 🙂

FULL DISCLOSURE: I’ve got some experience with hangovers. Does that make me an expert? Certainly not. I’m not a doctor, nor am I Polish. But I tried and tested all of the Polish hangover cures listed in this article. Some of them actually work well, at least for me!

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