Suska sechlońska

Suska sechlońska  is a dried and smoked prune grown and produced in the Malopolskie Voivodship in Poland. Its name refers to the Polish word for dried fruit, suska, while the word sechlońska refers to a place called Sechna, known for its traditional drying process.

The prunes may be prolate or oblong and have wrinkled, sticky skin on the exterior which can be deep blue to black. On the interior, it has a juicy, pulpy and elastic flesh and the taste is delicately sweet with a smoky scent and aftertaste. Due to their high sugar content and low water content, only plums of the Prunus domestica variety are used in the process, making them suitable for drying and smoking.

According to a local legend, a priest told his parishioners to plant plum trees as penance for their sins. In time, the parishioners started making plum vodka and getting drunk. In order to stop the drunkenness trend, the priest ordered that the fruit had to be dried, so the parishioners couldn't convert it to alcohol, and that is how the tradition of drying and smoking Suska sechlońska came to be.