Bigos is not made in a hurry: it is stewed in the oven and then left to rest for at least a day — twice. But one big pot then feeds a family for several evenings.

The recipe was shared by food writer Dariia on her blog Treska, who says she got it from the owner of a Polish restaurant where bigos is the signature dish.

A few of her rules: there should be more sauerkraut than fresh cabbage — about 3 to 2 — and both cut the same way; bigos must be sour — if the sauerkraut is not sour enough, a sour apple or half a glass of red wine helps; fewer prunes are better than more, and the meat is cut small. Choose smoked sausages without liquid smoke in the ingredients.

What you need

  • sauerkraut (with its juice) — 1.5 kg;
  • fresh white cabbage — 1 kg;
  • pork neck — 800 g;
  • hunter’s sausages — 200 g;
  • prunes — 100 g;
  • onions — 2 large;
  • carrot — 1 large;
  • dry red wine — 1 glass;
  • tomato paste — 2 tbsp;
  • caraway — 1 tsp;
  • coriander seeds — ½ tsp;
  • black pepper — ½ tsp;
  • oil — 2 tbsp;
  • salt — to taste.

How to make it

1. Take a heavy pot. Bigos is best made in the oven in a heavy-walled pot. The hob works too, but then you have to stir often.

2. Vegetables. Cut the onions into half-rings and coarsely grate the carrot. Put them in the pot, add the oil, stir and place in an oven heated to 160 °C for 10 minutes.

3. Meat and sausages. Slice the sausages into rounds and cut the pork into small pieces, slightly larger than the sausage. Add to the vegetables, stir and return to the oven, lowering it to 150 °C. Cook covered for 40–50 minutes, stirring every 15–20 minutes.

4. Fresh cabbage. Add the fresh cabbage, stir, season with salt and return to the oven for 15–20 minutes.

5. Sauerkraut. Grind the spices in a mortar. Add the sauerkraut with all its juice, the spices and the prunes cut into strips. Stew, stirring, until the cabbage is soft — 30 to 60 minutes. At the end add the tomato paste and stew for 5 more minutes.

6. The first day in the cold. Take the bigos out of the oven, let it cool and put it somewhere cold — a balcony or the fridge — for at least a day. This is one of the key secrets: bigos has to rest.

7. Wine. The next day put the bigos into an oven heated to 160 °C. When it is hot, pour in the wine and stew, stirring, for at least 30 minutes. It should be neither dry nor runny.

8. The second day. Put the bigos back into the cold for at least another day — only then reheat and serve.

As a reminder, last time in Tasty Bucha we fried pork chops that soak in milk before the pan.

Nota bene

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