In parts of Texas, kolaches are a popular breakfast food. Kolaches are savory pastries filled with meat and cheese.
But the story of kolache is much more interesting than you might imagine as a breakfast food.
It’s a story that weaves together immigration, smart business acumen, and a whole lot of American culture.
General Tso never tried “his” chicken, plus 4 fun facts about this Chinese-American classic
A true Texas delicacy
According to the Texas State Historical Association website, the first Czechs immigrated to Texas in the early 19th century. By the time of the Civil War, there were 700 Czechs living in Texas, but Czech immigration to Texas increased dramatically in the early 20th century.
According to the Texas State Historical Association, by 1910 there were 15,074 “foreign-born Czechs” in Texas.
Traditional Czech kolacs, like the one pictured at far right, are stuffed with fruit, while kolacs served in Texas today (above and left) are filled with meat. (Brett Kummer/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
Among the many items Czech immigrants brought to Texas were traditional pastries, including kolaches.
Kolacs are Czech pastries filled with fruit. A Shipley Donuts representative told Fox News Digital in a phone interview that kolacs are “like thumbprint cookies, but larger.”
5 cool local hot dogs to try from coast to coast
Kolaches account for a third of the Texas-based chain’s sales, said Ashley Lennington, who works for a Dallas public-relations firm that represents Shipley Donuts.
“Kolaches are one of our favorite breakfast options here in Texas and in Shipley, and we wanted to offer our guests a delicious, protein-packed breakfast option outside of our legendary donuts,” Shipley Donuts executive chef Kaitlyn Venable told Fox News Digital.
But the kolaches sold, eaten and loved in Texas are savory, unsweet and usually contain no fruit.
A spokesperson for Shipley Donuts told Fox News Digital that Kolachi accounts for one-third of Shipley Donuts’ sales. Shipley Donuts sells Kolachis in a salty flavor. (Shipley Donuts)
And the Texas kolache looks more like a closed loaf of bread than a big thumbprint cookie.
Technically, Texas kolache is a Czech-American pastry known as kloversník, but the word kolache is still more commonly used.
“In Texas, it’s all about meat,” Lennington says.
Technically, Texas kolač is a Czech-American pastry known as kloberšnik.
The pronunciation is also a bit different: In Texas, kolache is pronounced “ko-lar-chee,” but in Czech it’s “closer to ko-rasch,” Lenington said.
The New England sandwich is a very unusual treat, with an intriguing story and five fun facts
The Texas Kolache “started as a kielbasa sausage on a yeast roll,” Lennington said.
People seemed to enjoy the dish, and “it just spread from there.”
Shipley Donuts began selling kolaches in 1995 as a tasty breakfast (or lunch or snack) alternative to doughnuts, according to Lennington.
This kolache from Shipley Do-Nuts is loaded with ham, sausage and jalapeños. (Shipley Donuts)
“We saw other Houston-based doughnut brands and breakfast places selling delicious kolaches, so we started selling them too,” Lennington said.
Shipley Donuts recently added an egg kolaches to its menu, with plans to add more, Venable said.
“Our three new egg and cheese kolaches, which we launched in early July, have quickly become bestsellers, breaking daily sales records almost every week,” she says. “Seeing this success, I’m already in the kitchen developing more new kolaches to add to our menu.”
Click here to sign up for our lifestyle newsletter
Kolaches are common throughout Texas, but Kolache Factory, a Katy, Texas-based chain, has stores in nine states and ships products across the United States.
Founded in 1982, the Kolache Factory offers both traditional sweet fruit kolaches and savory meat-filled Texas kolaches on its menu.
Click here to get the FOX News app
“Kolaches are standalone and easy to eat,” the Kolache Factory website says.
“It can be easily taken anywhere, such as in the car, at a group or business meeting, or at the ballpark.”
For more lifestyle stories, visit www.foxnews.com/lifestyle
The company says kolaches are “an ideal option for a nutritious ‘on-the-go’ meal.”
