Bigos Polish Sauerkraut Stew Food

BIGOS (POLISH HUNTER'S STEW)

Steps:

• Place sauerkraut in a large pan or casserole dish and pour in 4 cups of boiling water. Add prunes, allspice, and bay leaves. Simmer until Sauerkraut is soft, about 50 minutes.
• Pour about 1 cup of boiling water over mushrooms and soak to rehydrate, about 30 minutes. Drain and chop mushrooms, reserving the liquid.
• Heat oil in a frying pan over medium to high heat. Add onion and sausage. Saute while stirring until onion is soft and sausage is browned, about 5 minutes.
• In a separate pan, bring about 4 cups of water to a boil. Add beef, pork, and bacon. Simmer until cooked through for 20 minutes, then drain.
• When sauerkraut is soft, add the drained meat mixture, sausage-onion mixture, and soaked mushrooms; mix well. Simmer uncovered over low heat, about 20 minutes.
• Pour in red wine and cook for 15 minutes until flavors are well blended. Season with caraway seeds, marjoram, salt, and pepper. Stir in tomato puree. If the stew is too dry, pour in some of the water reserved from soaking the mushrooms, and simmer so flavors combine, about 5 minutes.

BIGOS - POLISH SAUERKRAUT STEW

Steps:

• Slice kielbasa into 1 inch rounds; brown in skillet.
• Brown the onions.
• Drain juice from sauerkraut and add 1 to 2 tablespoons sugar.
• In a large casserole, make layers of sliced potatoes, sauerkraut, kielbasa, and onions.
• Mix soup with 1/2 cup water and pour over other ingredients.
• Sprinkle with caraway seeds.
• Cover and bake at 375 degrees for about 1 hour.
• Uncover and bake an additional 15 to 20 minutes until top is brown.

BIGOS (POLISH STEW WITH SAUERKRAUT, BEETS, AND MEAT)

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Brown onion, chorizo and speck, mixing regularly. Transfer to a bowl.
• Heat the remaining tablespoon oil over high heat and add the pork and beef. Sear on 2-3 sides and cook for a further 2 minutes. Add sauerkraut together with the cooked chorizo, speck and onion and all the remaining ingredients. Mix well. Cover with a lid, bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer for 1-2 hours or until meat is tender and falling apart to the touch.
• Spoon bigos into a serving bowl, serve on its own, with mash, quinoa, or green salad & slices of fresh sourdough bread.