Bigos (Polish Hunter's Stew)

Method

1. Put the dried mushrooms in a bowl, pour over the hot water and soak for 20 min. Meanwhile taste the sauerkraut: if it is very sour, rinse it once in cold water and squeeze it dry, then chop it roughly into 2 to 3 cm lengths. Shred the cabbage into 5 mm strips, cut the pork into 2 cm cubes, the bacon into 1 cm strips and the sausage into 1 cm half-moons, and dice the onion. Lift out the mushrooms and chop them; pour off the soaking liquid carefully, leaving any grit in the bottom of the bowl.

   Add in this stepDried wild mushrooms (porcini or similar) 10 gHot water (for soaking) 250 ml

2. Melt the lard in a heavy 20 cm pot, add the bacon and cook on medium heat for 5 min until the fat runs. Turn up to medium-high heat, add the pork and brown it for 6 min, turning only now and then, until coloured on all sides. If the cubes don't fit in a single layer, brown them in two goes; crowded meat steams instead of browning.

   Add in this stepLard (or neutral oil) 1 tbspSmoked bacon (slab) 60 gPork shoulder 200 g

   medium heat→medium-high heat

3. Add the onion and sausage and cook on medium heat for 6 min until the onion is soft and lightly golden. Scrape up the brown bits stuck to the bottom with a wooden spoon; they carry a lot of flavour.

   Add in this stepOnion 1Smoked sausage (Polish kiełbasa) 120 g

   medium heat

4. Stir in the tomato paste for 1 minute, then pour in the wine and scrape the bottom. Add the sauerkraut, cabbage, chopped mushrooms with their soaking liquid, prunes, bay leaves, allspice and the juniper berries lightly crushed with the flat of a knife. Bring to the boil on medium-high heat for 6 min, cover, turn down to low heat and simmer gently for 1 h 40 min. Stir right to the bottom every 15 minutes, and if it looks dry, add 50 ml water at a time.

   Add in this stepTomato paste 1½ tbspDry red wine (or water) 100 mlSauerkraut (jar or pouch) 300 gWhite cabbage 200 gPitted prunes 4Bay leaves 1Whole allspice berries 3Juniper berries 3

   medium-high heat→low heat

5. Uncover, rub the marjoram between your fingers over the pot and simmer on low heat for 15 min more to reduce. It is ready when the cabbage is very soft, glossy and brown, there is hardly any liquid left and the pork falls apart easily. Sauerkraut and sausage are salty, so taste before adding salt and pepper. Remove the bay leaves.

   Add in this stepDried marjoram 1 tspSalt to tasteBlack pepper to taste

   low heat

6. Bigos tastes best the next day, once the flavours have settled. Cool it, refrigerate overnight, then reheat on medium-low heat for 10 min, stirring, until piping hot all the way through. It is also good straight away. Serve with rye bread or boiled potatoes.

   medium-low heat