Bigos (Polish hunter's stew)

Beef · Polish classic.

Ingredients

• 1 sliced White Cabbage
• 250ml Beef Stock
• 100g Mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons Lard
• 400g German Sausages
• 250g Bacon
• 2 chopped Onion
• 750g Beef
• 200g Prunes
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 2 Cloves
• 12 Peppercorns
• 4 Juniper Berries
• 4 Allspice Berries
• 90 ml Red Wine
• 2 tablespoons Tomato Puree

Method

1. Heat the pan — Put the cabbage in a heavy casserole dish, add the stock and cook over a low heat for about 50 mins, until tender.
2. Continue cooking — Cut the soaked mushrooms into strips and save the soaking water.
3. Fry — Heat the lard and fry the sausages and bacon, then scoop out, leaving the fat in the pan.
4. Fry — Fry the onion in the same pan for 5-8 mins until lightly browned.
5. Add ingredients — Add the mushrooms and their liquid along with all the cooked meat, onions and prunes, then cover and cook for 20 mins.
6. Simmer — Add the spices, red wine and tomato purée and bring to a simmer, then cover and cook for 1 hr.
7. Season — Season well and leave to cool. Will keep covered and chilled for up to two days.
8. Continue cooking — Bigos improves in flavour over a couple of days.
9. Heat the pan — Leave to cool first. Reheat until piping hot before serving.

More Poland recipes

• Beetroot & red cabbage sauerkraut
• Bigos (Hunters Stew)
• Braised stuffed cabbage
• Challah
• Golabki (cabbage roll)
• Mini bundt cakes