Fat Tuesday is February 9. This year, join the Polish tradition of indulging in pączki.

The pączki may not be the next cronut (yet), but on Fat Tuesday, the demand for this colossal, rich jelly doughnut in New York’s Polish communities far surpasses those famous cronut lines. Pączki (pronounced pownch-key) are what American jelly doughnuts aspire to be when they grow up: a eggy, rich brioche bun that is deep-fried, filled with a fresh fruit preserve, and dunked in a sugar glaze or powdered sugar. For only $1 a piece, it’s the best bakery deal in the city.

Fat Tuesday is literally a day to get fat: It’s the carnal cap to the annual bacchanal revelry of Carnival, observed with lavish feasts that help ensure you’ll have plenty to repent for when Lent starts the next day. The Polish pączki are perfect for Fat Tuesday because one clocks in at a whopping 425 calories and 25 grams of fat.

According to folklore, Polish housewives created pączki because they needed to use up sugar, butter, lard, and cream before the start of Lent (no fun foods allowed). Translated as “little packages,” pączki were historically beloved by peasants and lords alike — maybe because the dough contains a tiny bit of grain alcohol to prevent it from absorbing too much grease. I hypothesize that eating pączki after a night of drinking too much will also soak up the vodka in your belly. I’m looking for volunteers to test it out.

Tens of millions of pączki are still devoured in Poland every Pączki Day, which is traditionally on Fat Thursday (before Fat Tuesday – keeping your Fat Days straight so far?). Since Fat Tuesday is the more popular holiday in the US, Polish immigrants also celebrate Pączki Day on Fat Tuesday — because two Pączki Days are always better than one.

Head to Brooklyn to score pączki, where polish immigrants settled in Williamsburg and then in Greenpoint. While hipsters killed the Polish food stars in Williamsburg, Polish still dominates on the streets in Greenpoint

Every authentic Polish bakery in Brooklyn will have paczki for sale. Everyone argues about who has the best pączki. While they are arguing, eat all of their pączki. Or if your stomach isn’t that big, below are the two best pączki in the borough. Pączki are available year round, so there really is no reason to wait until Pączki Day to indulge. 

Williamsburg: Northside Bakery             
149 N 8th S, Williamsburg; 190 Nassau Ave, Greenpoint

While most bakeries offer at most two varieties of pączki (glazed or powdered), Northside Bakery offers four: glazed or powdered with strawberry jelly, powdered plain, and coconut cream. Their pączki are perfectly balanced: not greasy (lots of vodka?), moist, fluffy, and injected with a generous amount of homemade jam. The dough is sweet and pale yellow like an Italian panettone or French brioche. Take a hearty bite and a huge poof of powdered sugar will cover your shirt while filling squirts out the other end. Northside Bakery also serves quality bread, meat, and hot deli items (like pierogi and stuffed cabbage) to-go, so you can get a great pączki as well as a hearty dinner.

Greenpoint: Syrena Bakery
207 Norman Ave, Greenpoint

Syrena Bakery’s prune jam is what a Polish babci (grandmother) would have given you slathered on toast while pinching your cheeks. The taste may be surprising for those who didn’t grow up being force-fed prunes at their grandma’s house, but the deep, rich stewed flavor grows is comforting, and the thick consistency holds up well to the brioche dough. If you aren’t sure how you’ll like it (or even if you are sure) get a back-up slice of one of their many Polish cakes, cookies, pastries, and breads that line the long shelves on the walls and glass display cases. Don’t be intimated brusque women behind the counter – they’ll bark at you in Polish, but will quickly switch to English; make them smile by saying, “jane-coo-ya” (thank you) when you pay. Everyone leaves with a bag – or two – filled with sweets and breads thanks to the amazingly low prices but high quality (it has the cheapest pączki ($0.85) in Brooklyn). Syrena bakery’s lines snake along the long counter and nearly out the door, making it a perfect place to reenact a bread line in communist Poland.

Where to Get Pączki in Brooklyn

If you want to do your own taste test, head to one of these shops:

Northside Bakery / Old Poland Foods:  149 N 8th S (Williamsburg); 190 Nassau Ave (Greenpoint)

Syrena Bakery:  207 Norman Ave (Greenpoint)

Jaslowiczanka Bakery: 163 Nassau Ave (Greenpoint)

Adam’s Delicatessen: 112 Nassau Ave (Greenpoint)

Star Deli : 176 Nassau Ave (Greenpoint)

Rzeszowska Bakery: 948 Manhattan Ave (Greenpoint)