Bigos is a Polish dish usually translated as “Hunter’s Stew". It’s made by stewing various meats with sauerkraut and fresh cabbage. There are many variations, as each family makes it differently. This is my recipe.
First, put some dried porcini mushrooms in water to soak. Add some leek and butter to your pot
Then add one bag drained but not rinsed sauerkraut and a small head of cabbage. You don’t need to add salt to this because the sauerkraut has plenty briny salty flavor.
Set over medium low heat and begin to cook. In the next burner, begin browning your meats. Start with 4-6oz of bacon or salt pork
Then add about 12-16oz of each of the following, adding a pinch of salt as they go in the pan:
Pork
Lamb
Beef
Some kind of smoked sausage. I used some smoked kielbasa from my local Polish deli and some packaged pre cooked white bratwurst. These shouldn’t be salted.
As each meat is done, remove and put directly into the pot. Drain fat as necessary, but leave some in the pan. Using that leftover fat, sweat a chopped onion. When it’s softened, add the chopped dried porcinis and about three or four chopped prunes.
Deglaze with red wine and reduce until the wine is almost all gone
Add it to the pot, and then add seasonings. I used pepper, thyme, allspice, paprika, and caraway seed. Add a couple bay leaves. Mix well. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until your meat is fork tender. How long is that? That’s up to your stove, pot, and size of meat chunks. Could be an hour and a half, could be two hours, or even more.
This will produce a “dry” stew—that is, one with very little liquid. You can add more liquid for a “wetter” stew. You can add vegetables, tomatoes, whatever you like.
Serve generous portions. After all, it’s called bigos, not littleos. I like to serve mine on top of mashed potatoes. Without the potatoes, this is a very keto friendly low carb recipe.
And how does it taste? You get a little tang from the sauerkraut, but you get all the meat flavors. The mushrooms and caraway add a lovely earthiness, and the prunes and wine just the tiniest touch of sweetness to balance the brininess.
Tonight, I’m fixing one of Chef John’s recipes: Tips and Taters.
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