Paprikash (‘Paprykarz szczeciński’): transformation of maritime identities and domestication of ethnic food

Abstract

At the center of our research is the 'Paprykarz' (Paprikash—fish and rice sandwich pate), local fish food which is an example of the relations and networks in a field of maritime culture. These relations address both the question of the social memory of national fishing industry and a regional identity. Sold originally in a tin, ‘Paprykarz’ was an export hit in the 1980s, In fact, it was a domesticated version of a Senegalese dish, called Tiep bou dienn Sénégalais, Thieboudienne, The story of paprikash is an unusually interesting one for those researching ethnic food, due to the complexity of its case. The many intersecting narratives about paprikash include stories from the food and fisheries industries; stories of political transformation, domestication, Soviet colonialism, and Creolisation; stories, too, about creating local identity, about nutritional habits, and the idea of slow food.