Bigos

OK I’ve been calling this Big-Ass, that’s what you’d get if you ate this every day! A Very, very hearty gig!

Ingredients:-

250g of Kielbasa (Smoked Polish Sausage), cut into ½ inch slices
2 Slices of Smoked Bacon, cubed (We cured our own)
500g of Pork Shoulder, cubed
35 of Plain Flour (Gluten free for us)
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
1 Onion, diced
2 Carrots, chopped
200g of Button Mushroom, sliced
½ a Green Cabbage, shredded
500g of Sauerkraut, drained and rinsed
60Ml of Red Wine
1 Bay leaf
1 Tsp of Dried Marjoram or Oregano
1 Tsp of Dried Basil
1 Tbsp of Paprika
¼ Tsp of Salt
Freshly ground Black Pepper
1/8 Tsp of Caraway Seeds, crushed
A pinch of Cayenne Pepper
20g of Dried Mushrooms, soaked in water for an hour
A dash of Hot Chilli Sauce
A dash of Worcestershire Sauce
400ml of Beef Stock
A Can of Chopped Tomatoes
2 Tbsp of Tomato Puree
Oil to fry

Method:-

(1) Heat a large flame proof pot over a medium heat.
(2) Add the Bacon and  Kielbasa, cooking until the Bacon Fat renders.
(3) Stir to brown the Sausages and then remove and set aside.
(4) Coat the Pork with Flour, seasoned with Salt & Pepper and fry of the Bacon renderings until golden brown.
(5) Remove and set aside with the  Bacon and  Kielbasa.
(6) Add the Onions, Garlic, Carrots, Sliced Mushrooms, Cabbage and Sauerkraut.
(7) Reduce the heat and cook until everything is softened, stirring occasionally.
(8) Pour in the Red Wine to deglaze the pan.
(9) Add the Bay Leaf, Basil,  Marjoram, Paprika, Caraway Seeds and Cayenne Pepper.
(10) Cook for a further minutes, stirring.
(11) Stir in the Dried Mushrooms, Hot Chilli Sauce, Worcestershire Sauce, Beef Stock, Chopped Tomatoes, Tomato Puree and heat to return to the boil, stirring occasionally.
(12) Return the cooked meats you set aside and cover.
(13) Place on a pre-heated over at 170c for 2 to 3 hours, or until the Port is tender.

You really don’t need anything more than a slice of toasted bread with this…… It’s has quite a few ingredients, but they are all inexpensive and the flavour combinations really worked. The quantities above will happily feed 4 to 6 very hungry folk…..