Homemade bigos with sauerkraut and meat Recipe
Bigos is one of the best-known Polish dishes – a thick, aromatic pot of cabbage with meat that tastes best reheated the next day. In Poland it often appears for holidays, family gatherings and parties, because it’s easy to feed a larger group with it. It’s a bit like a French stew, but with a lot of sauerkraut, which gives it its characteristic, slightly sour taste.
This bigos combines both sauerkraut and fresh cabbage, several types of meat and smoked bacon, plus dried mushrooms and prunes for depth of flavor. Long, slow cooking and reheating the next day make the taste richer and more complex, just like in classic Polish home cooking.
Chef's tips
Don’t rush the cooking – bigos really benefits from long, gentle simmering and even repeated reheating. If you have time, cook it one day earlier and reheat before serving. Remember to taste the sauerkraut first: if it’s very sour, rinse it briefly, but don’t overdo it so you don’t lose all the characteristic tang.
How to serve
Serve in deep bowls with fresh bread, mashed or boiled potatoes, or rustic sourdough. It’s perfect for buffets and parties – keep it warm in a heavy pot or slow cooker so guests can help themselves.
Ingredients
- sauerkraut if it’s very sour, rinse briefly with water - 1 kg
- white cabbage can be young cabbage - 0.5 kg
- boneless pork shoulder you can also use pork neck - 500 g
- pork sausage any good sausage, preferably semi-dried - 300 g
- smoked bacon can be replaced with smoked ham - 150 g
- dried prunes pitted - 6 piece
- dried mushrooms optional, but highly recommended - 20 g
- onion - 2 piece
- tomato paste - 2 tablespoon
- bay leaf - 3 piece
- allspice berries - 5 piece
- dried marjoram - 1 tablespoon
- oil or lard - 3 tablespoon
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Preparation
- Pour hot water over the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and set aside for at least 20–30 minutes until they soften. Then squeeze them out and chop into small pieces, keeping the soaking liquid.
- If the sauerkraut is very sour, quickly rinse it under running water and squeeze it out well. Chop it with a knife into shorter pieces.
- Shred the fresh white cabbage into thin strips. Peel the onions and dice them finely. Cut the bacon into small strips, the sausage into half-slices, and the meat into cubes about 2×2 cm.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil or lard in a large, wide pot. Add the bacon and fry for 5–7 minutes over medium heat until the fat renders and the bacon is lightly browned.
- Add the onion to the bacon and fry for 3–5 minutes over medium heat, stirring often, until it softens and becomes slightly translucent but not brown.
- Add the diced pork, increase the heat and fry for 8–10 minutes until the meat is browned on the outside. Stir from time to time so it doesn’t stick.
- Add the sausage and fry for another 3–4 minutes until lightly browned.
- Add the sauerkraut, fresh cabbage, chopped mushrooms, dried prunes, bay leaves, allspice berries and the mushroom soaking liquid to the pot (be careful not to pour in any sand that may have settled at the bottom of the bowl). If needed, add enough water so the cabbage is almost covered.
- Bring everything to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover the pot and cook for 60 minutes, stirring from time to time so nothing sticks to the bottom.
- After an hour add the tomato paste and marjoram, season with salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly and cook covered for another 40–60 minutes over very low heat, until the cabbage is soft and the stew thick and aromatic.
- Taste and, if needed, season with additional salt, pepper or marjoram. If the bigos is too thin, cook it for a few minutes uncovered so some of the liquid evaporates.
- Serve hot, preferably with bread or potatoes. Bigos improves in flavor if, after cooling, it is reheated again the next day.
Storage
Bigos po całkowitym wystudzeniu przełóż do pojemnika, przechowuj w lodówce do 5 dni. Bardzo dobrze znosi mrożenie do 3 miesięcy. Podgrzewaj powoli w garnku na małym ogniu, mieszając od czasu do czasu; można dodać odrobinę wody, jeśli jest zbyt gęsty.
