Bigos (Polish Hunter's Stew)

Fry the bacon in a large heavy pot over medium heat until the fat runs and the edges crisp. Scoop it out, then brown the cubed pork shoulder hard in the bacon fat, in batches so it colours instead of steaming. Set the pork aside with the bacon.

💡 That brown crust on the meat is flavour you cannot add later. Do not crowd the pan.

Lower the heat and soften the onion in the same pot for 6 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and let it darken for a minute, then add the fresh shredded cabbage and stir until it wilts down.

Add the drained sauerkraut, the sliced sausage, the browned pork and bacon, the soaked mushrooms with their liquid, the prunes and all the spices. Pour in enough water to almost cover, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook very gently for 2 hours, stirring every 20 minutes.

💡 Keep it barely bubbling. Bigos should stew, not boil — a hard boil dries the meat before the cabbage is ready.

Uncover for the last 30 minutes and let the liquid cook down until the bigos is glossy and moist rather than soupy. Fish out the bay leaves and allspice, then taste and adjust with pepper and a splash of the reserved kraut brine if it needs more edge.

Serve hot with dark rye bread or boiled potatoes. But if you can, cool it and reheat it the next day, and the day after — each reheating deepens and marries the flavours, and the third-day bowl is the one Poles wait for.