Hurka is something that I can agree with, love it, I actually prefer the one made with liver( májas ) to the blood sausage Hurka.
Stuffed cabbage, I would only eat the stuffing, with a dollop of sour cream and give the cabbage to my wife, who actually preferred the cabbage to the meat and rice stuffing.
Yes, my parents made the blood sausage Hurka but at one time I did try the one made with liver. My father used to very proudly tell me, "the Polacs invented these dishes because they did not want to waste any of the pig........" He was basically suggesting that the Poles were (cleverly) the only ones in the world doing this, and later in life I learned the Scottish are doing the same thing with a dish called Haggis, which my father never mentioned.
On this same topic, I remember a lunchmeat the Eastern Europeans served which they called "Head Cheese." Basically it was a gelatinous mixture of meat and gelatin served in slices on a sandwich. I was told it was basically made from the head of the pig hence its nickname, "head cheese." I don't know what the real name is for it. This is what happened when second generations applied English words to Eastern European dishes that had other names. I never learned the real names of any of these dishes.
I had stuffed cabbage served with sour cream as well, and when my mother made it she would use sour cream and paprika.
I ate all of this stuff commonly as a kid, but in adulthood I gravitate towards other cuisines. Pig's feet is the one dish I still enjoy on rare occasions with older family members who still make it.
