Recipe

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Episode 122

Bigos: Polish Hunter’s Stew

Ingredients

2.2 lb (1 kg) venison/game meat (venison, boar, elk, lamb)
3.5 oz (100 g) smoked raw bacon (in a piece)
1 handful (0.35 oz, 10 g) dried porcini mushrooms
1 – 2 onions
2 garlic cloves
1 tbsp honey
5 all-spice berries
8 juniper berries
3 – 4 dried bay leaves
8 dried, smoked prunes
3.5 oz (100 g) kiełbasa ‘myśliwska’ (smoked & dried hunter’s sausage)
3.5 oz (100 g) kiełbasa ‘jałowcowa’ (juniper sausage)
1.5 cup (360 ml) dry red wine
14 oz (400 g) sauerkraut
5.3 oz (150 g) fresh white cabbage (or Savoy Caabbage)
2 – 3 tbsp apple or elderberry vinegar
Salt, to taste
Coarsely ground black pepper, to taste
Canola oil, for frying
Instructions
Cut all the meats into thick chunks. Season them with coarsely ground black pepper. Pour canola oil into the frying pan and set on a medium heat. Fry the meat in hot oil until golden brown.
As the meat fries, dice the 3.5 oz of bacon, a handful of dried porcini mushrooms, one large or two smaller onions and slice 2 cloves of garlic. Add everything into the pan with fried meat. Stir and braise everything together until the onion starts to turn transparent.
Let’s start seasoning. Add 3 to 4 dried bay leaves, 5 all-spice berries, 8 juniper berries and 1 tablespoon of honey.
Cut smoked prunes in half. Cut both kiełbasa sausages into rounds and add them in.
Pour in 1.5 cup of dry red wine. Set the heat on ‘low’ and braise for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Chop sauerkraut roughly (as always – keep the juices, they might come in handy later!).
Chop white cabbage into small cubes. Add to the pan. If you feel there’s not enough liquid, pour in more wine, meat stock or water. Braise on the lowest possible heat for 2 hours.
To finish off, and 2 to 3 tablespoons of vinegar. Have a taste – if the dish needs more ‘kick’, add a few tablespoons of sauerkraut juice as well.
Serve with some fresh bread.