Bigos Staropolski

Ingredients

• 30 g dried porcini or other wild mushrooms
• 250 ml boiling water, for soaking the mushrooms
• 800 g sauerkraut, drained
• 500 g white cabbage, cored and shredded
• 600 g boneless pork shoulder, cut into 3 cm cubes
• 300 g smoked kielbasa, sliced 1 cm thick
• 150 g smoked streaky bacon, diced
• 2 large onions, halved and sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 100 g pitted prunes, halved
• 250 ml dry red wine
• 500 ml beef or pork stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 allspice berries
• 8 juniper berries, lightly crushed
• 1 tsp caraway seeds
• 1 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 tbsp lard or neutral oil
• 1 tsp black pepper
• Salt, to taste

Before you cook

• Put the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Leave to soak for 30 minutes, then lift them out, chop them roughly and keep the soaking liquid.
• Squeeze the sauerkraut in your hands to remove excess brine, then chop it roughly so no strand is longer than your thumb. Taste it: if it is aggressively sour, rinse it once under cold water and squeeze again.
• Cut the pork shoulder into 3 cm cubes and pat them dry with kitchen paper.
• Slice the kielbasa, dice the bacon, slice the onions and garlic, and halve the prunes.

Steps

1. Melt the lard in a large heavy casserole over medium heat.
2. Add the diced bacon and fry for 6 minutes, stirring now and then, until the fat has run out and the pieces are browning at the edges.
3. Lift the bacon out with a slotted spoon and set it aside on a plate.
4. Turn the heat to medium-high and brown the pork cubes in the bacon fat in two batches, about 4 minutes a batch, then move them to the plate with the bacon.
5. Add the sliced kielbasa to the pot and fry for 3 minutes until the edges curl and colour, then lift it out to join the other meat.
6. Drop the heat to medium and add the sliced onions with a good pinch of salt. Cook them for 10 minutes, stirring often, until soft and golden.
7. Stir in the garlic, caraway seeds and paprika and cook for 1 minute, until the pot smells sweet and spiced.
8. Stir in the tomato paste and cook it for 2 minutes, scraping the base of the pot as you go.
9. Pour in the red wine and let it bubble for 3 minutes, lifting the browned bits off the bottom with your spoon.
10. Add the shredded fresh cabbage and stir it through until it starts to wilt, about 4 minutes.
11. Add the chopped sauerkraut, the chopped soaked mushrooms and the mushroom soaking liquid, stopping before the gritty last spoonful in the bowl.
12. Return all the meat and bacon to the pot along with any juices on the plate.
13. Pour in the stock, then add the bay leaves, allspice berries, juniper berries and black pepper.
14. Bring everything to a gentle simmer, then cover the pot with the lid slightly ajar.
15. Cook at a bare simmer for 2 hours, stirring every 30 minutes so nothing catches on the base.
16. Stir in the halved prunes and cook uncovered for a further 30 minutes, until the liquid has reduced to a thick glossy coating and the pork falls apart under a spoon.
17. Taste and add salt and more pepper as needed, remembering the sauerkraut and kielbasa are already salty.
18. Fish out the bay leaves, then let the bigos stand off the heat for 15 minutes before serving with rye bread and boiled potatoes.