Bigos - Polish Hunters Stew

An Autumn delight that I make often, every time it tastes slightly different, but it's always a comfort food that I promise you'll return to, Bigos maybe be Poland's national dish but really - make Bigos and embrace it 'cos you'd skip the pub if it was about to go on the table!

Also the thing is that - embrace your local Polish shop too, the Polish shop keepers seem amazed when I say I'm making Bigos, and I ask them what type of sausage to put in and they suggest one type from an array of others, 'oh and add some ribs, like these smoked ones'. Great I think but what do they do with the others? What other delights am I not aware of? Buy your Sauerkraut there and also buy Corn Bread and Rye Bread too.Bigos is a recipe that varies as much as the person making it does, it's 'Hunters Stew' meaning it's what that was caught so... Anyway here's mine,

Ingredients

Pork Belly
Bacon
Sausages

Carrots

Onions

Mushrooms

Tinned Tomatoes/Passata
Teaspoon of Brown Sugar
Cooking Apple
Ribs 

Cabbage

Sauerkraut
Garlic

All Spice

Bigos also tastes lots better the following day, I usually cook it half way through then put it in the slow cooker for the following day. Serve with some great bread - maybe that Rye Bread. If you are not doing this simmer the completed dish for about an an hour and thirty minutes, that is if you want it now.

So slice into rings the onions and add garlic and slowly fry in oil, add Carrots too, until the Onions start to brown. Set aside, add Pork Belly cut into three cms lengths most of the fat removed, fry, add bacon pieces, brown. Add Mushrooms, Smash a couple of All Spice and stir in, add Tomatoes, Sugar, Cooking Apple (pealed and in chunks) add meat and sliced Sausage and Ribs (if using). Allow to simmer for a a few minutes.

Next about half a shredded fresh Cabbage and half the jar of Sauerkraut (squeeze the Sauerkraut through your fingers to get rid of too much vinegar) and add, the pan will be full - don't worry - it'll reduce.

Note - If you are to put this in a slow cooker simmer the whole lot for twenty mins and then put in the 'crock pot', otherwise the Carrots will be hard. 

Enjoy

'One thousand hairy Sandwiches,

Sat out one day for lunch,

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble,

Munch, Munch, Munch.'

Spike Millagan