Bigos (Polish Hunter—s Stew) — The Soup She Called Good

Babcia had a bad week. It started Monday. Mom went over in the morning and found Babcia in bed, awake but not wanting to get up. She said she was tired. Just tired. She stayed in bed until noon. This is a woman who has been up at 6 AM every day of her life. Tuesday was better — she was up, in her wheelchair, eating the pierogi I'd left. Wednesday was bad again. She slept most of the day. The home health aide was concerned enough to call Mom. Mom called the doctor. The doctor said it could be the recovery catching up with her, could be seasonal depression, could be her body winding down in the way that old bodies do. He didn't use the word "dying." He used phrases like "natural decline" and "age-appropriate changes." They mean the same thing. Everyone knows they mean the same thing. I went over every evening this week. I cooked. I sat with her. On Wednesday night she was in the living room, in her chair, blanket on her lap, and she said, "Jakub, play me something." I don't play an instrument. She knows this. But I pulled up a Polish hymn on my phone — the one she hums in the kitchen — and played it softly, and she closed her eyes and hummed along. Her voice was thin. Like paper. Like something the wind could take. I held her hand. I've never held Babcia's hand before. Not like this. Not sitting in a dark living room listening to a hymn while she hummed along and the January wind rattled the windows. Her hand was small and gnarled and warm. At the brewery: I was distracted all week. Marcus noticed. He didn't say anything. He just handled the things I was supposed to handle and let me leave early on Thursday. Good people don't announce their goodness. They just cover your shift. Sunday dinner: I made everything and brought it to her bedroom. She ate in bed, propped up on pillows. She ate half a bowl of soup and two pierogi. She said, "Good soup." Then she fell asleep. Mom and I stood in Babcia's kitchen afterward. "She's getting worse," Mom said. I know. "We need to talk about—" I know, Mom. I know. But not yet. Let her have more soup first. Let her have more Sundays.

Babcia said “good soup” and then fell asleep, and I stood in her kitchen afterward not knowing what else to do with my hands — so I wrote this down. Bigos is the stew she made every winter when I was small, the one that filled the whole apartment with smoke and caraway and something I now understand was just the smell of being taken care of. It’s not a quick recipe, but that’s the point — the long simmer is the whole thing. Make it on a Sunday. Bring it to someone who needs more Sundays.

Bigos (Polish Hunter’s Stew)

Prep Time: 25 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour 45 minutes | Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 1 oz dried porcini mushrooms
• 1 cup boiling water (for soaking mushrooms)
• 6 oz thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 12 oz kielbasa (smoked Polish sausage), sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
• 1 lb boneless pork shoulder, cut into 3/4-inch chunks
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 small head fresh green cabbage, cored and roughly chopped (about 4 cups)
• 2 cups sauerkraut, drained (reserve 1/4 cup liquid)
• 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 cup dry red wine (or additional beef broth)
• 1 cup beef broth
• 3 bay leaves
• 4 whole allspice berries (or 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice)
• 4 juniper berries, lightly crushed (optional but traditional)
• 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• Salt to taste
• Fresh parsley or rye bread, for serving

Instructions

1. Rehydrate the mushrooms. Place dried porcini in a small bowl and pour boiling water over them. Let soak 20 minutes until soft. Lift mushrooms out with a fork, roughly chop, and set aside. Pour the soaking liquid through a fine strainer or paper towel, reserving it — this liquid is pure flavor and goes into the pot.
2. Render the bacon. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat, cook the bacon until the fat renders and the pieces are lightly crisp, about 6–8 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
3. Brown the pork. Increase heat to medium-high. Season the pork shoulder pieces with a pinch of salt and pepper. Working in two batches, sear the pork until browned on at least two sides, about 3–4 minutes per batch. Remove and set aside with the bacon.
4. Brown the kielbasa. In the same pot, add the kielbasa rounds and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
5. Build the base. Reduce heat to medium. Add the diced onion to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste and cook 1 minute more, stirring to coat.
6. Add the cabbage and sauerkraut. Stir in the fresh cabbage, sauerkraut, and reserved sauerkraut liquid. Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage begins to wilt.
7. Combine everything. Return the bacon, pork, and kielbasa to the pot. Add the chopped mushrooms and their strained soaking liquid, diced tomatoes, red wine, beef broth, bay leaves, allspice, juniper berries, caraway seeds, and black pepper. Stir to combine.
8. Simmer low and slow. Bring the stew to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover partially with a lid and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, until the pork is tender and the stew has thickened and deepened in color. The longer it simmers, the better it gets.
9. Taste and finish. Remove bay leaves and whole allspice berries. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. The sauerkraut provides a lot of salt, so season at the end rather than the beginning.
10. Serve. Ladle into deep bowls. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired. Serve with thick slices of rye bread for soaking up the broth. Bigos reheats beautifully and is often said to taste even better the next day.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 420 | Protein: 31g | Fat: 26g | Carbs: 14g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 980mg