The recipe for bigus (or bigos) is stewed sauerkraut with smoked sausage, sausages, pork or any meat. In Poland, Lithuania and Belarus, the bigus recipe is considered traditional.
Bigus with meat is a popular dish in the national cuisines of these countries, and a dish with cabbage and meat is present not only in the cafe menu. At home, housewives often use recipes for bigus with meat, sausage, and minced meat. Bigos is prepared with potatoes, rice, beef, and mushrooms.
In the spring, when the human body lacks vitamin C after winter, salads with sauerkraut help replenish it; in addition, a tasty and satisfying bigus with meat is prepared from sauerkraut.
No matter how hard we try to store sauerkraut at its optimal temperature, homemade sauerkraut still becomes sour by the end of winter. But homemade sauerkraut makes a delicious bigus with smoked meat, smoked meats, and sausage.
The recipe for bigus from sauerkraut with meat is similar to a hodgepodge, both dishes are prepared from meat that can be found in the home refrigerator: sausage, boiled pork, baked shank, and the meat in bigus can be of two or three types at the same time.
Advice from the Wonder Chef. The bigos recipe can be changed to suit your taste: add wine, prunes, mushrooms, herbs, stew the cabbage (if it is too acidic) half with fresh white cabbage - this is a classic version of bigos.
We offer a classic recipe for bigus with meat. This is bigus in Polish with champignon mushrooms.
History of the dish
Traditionally, bigus is prepared in the cold season - autumn or winter. It is very nutritious and can delight you on a cold winter evening. In Poland, bigus from sauerkraut has been prepared for several hundred years, but in other countries people are also interested in the recipes for this dish; just looking at the photo makes your mouth water.
We are accustomed to the fact that bigus is a dish of cabbage with meat, prepared in a special way. However, in the old cookbooks of Poland there are even recipes in which meat is not used. For example, in the famous book by Wojciech Velondko “The Perfect Cook”.
Before the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was divided, bigus was made from fish or meat, adding onions, parsley, vinegar or sour fruits to the main ingredient. The famous Polish author Stanislav Czerniecki, in his book of recipes, lists variations of bigus made from hazel grouse, crayfish or carp, and even with bacon. Such original combinations were easy to prepare at that time and most often dishes were made with them.
Juicy bigus made from cabbage, meat, and mushrooms
The bigus, which has survived to this day, was “invented” only in the 18th century and was called the “robber” bigus because it was inexpensive. In its composition, the main role is given to cabbage, and smoked meats and meat only complement its taste. If earlier sourness was created with the help of fruits, then later we had to abandon such an expensive option and limit ourselves to just sauerkraut.
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Interesting Facts
Why is bigus often called “hunting”? Precisely because they took him hunting with them. The pre-prepared dish was convenient to reheat at a rest stop; it helped to quickly and, most importantly, very tasty replenish spent energy. Bigos was heated in a vessel under a lid tightly sealed with dough. The pressure caused the lid to “shoot” and this meant that the dish was warm.
The hunting bigus used sausages and baked meat, which was left over after large receptions. Today, different types of meat are also used in the recipe: baked lamb, beef or pork, poultry or game, and they also make bigus with sausages, sausages, and ham. The greater the variety of meat flavors in bigus, the richer the dish.
Unusual bigus made from fresh cabbage and chicken legs with tomato paste
In the 19th century, this dish was served at the beginning of lunch, before soup, “for the appetite.” Because of the universal love for bigus in Poland, it was often eaten even at breakfast. The original version of bigus is cooked over coals for two to three days, so its taste is incomparable to the modern dish.
Basic rules for preparing bigus
Bigus is prepared in various variations, but most often its modern composition contains the following ingredients:
- Fresh white cabbage;
- Sauerkraut;
- Smoked sausages;
- Game;
- Pork;
- Salo.
Also, the following is added to the bigus for taste:
- Mushrooms;
- Tomatoes;
- Prunes;
- Red wine;
- Spices.
The preparation of bigus is divided into two parts: the cabbage is stewed separately and the meat and spices are fried separately. Then both parts are combined into one dish.
Basic rules for preparing bigus
They try not to eat bigus immediately after cooking, because it becomes truly tasty after a day or two, and sometimes longer. After “resting”, this dish acquires a truly indescribable taste.
Another feature of bigus is that the more often it is heated, the tastier it becomes. Unlike other dishes, it can and should be reheated, frozen and reheated.
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Recipes
Now let's move on to cooking. In our version of bigus, both components (meat and cabbage) are cooked together, in one saucepan.
Bigus of meat and cabbage in a saucepan
You can prepare juicy bigus from sauerkraut with sausage according to an old recipe, using the following products as in the photo:
- Fresh cabbage;
- Sauerkraut;
- Carrot;
- Pork;
- Smoked meats (ham or sausages);
- Spices (cumin, ground black pepper, peppercorns, salt);
- Tomato paste;
- Prunes;
- Vegetable oil for frying;
- Wine (white or red) or water.
Bigus made from cabbage, meat and smoked sausage
- Cut the washed and dried pork into small pieces. Pour vegetable oil into a cast iron or saucepan and fry the pork. When the pieces begin to brown, sprinkle the meat with salt and add grated carrots. After 5 minutes, add chopped sausage or other smoked meats.
- We make sure that the frying temperature is not too high and stir the dish periodically so that nothing burns.
- After another 3 minutes, add tomato paste to the meat and add wine or water with spices.
- Then we put finely shredded fresh cabbage into the cast iron pot with meat, followed by sauerkraut. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the bigus under the lid for about half an hour.
- When the bigus is almost ready, add chopped pieces of prunes to it, mix everything and simmer the dish over low heat for about 10 minutes.
The finished bigus is served hot, with a piece of bread and herbs. A hearty dish with pork and smoked meats has an indescribable aroma and tempting sourness. It will be enjoyed both at a regular home dinner and on a holiday table.
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How to cook bigus from fresh cabbage with chicken
If your meat is frozen, then take it out of the freezer in advance so that it thaws at room temperature. Or you can use the microwave and defrost the chicken there.
Step 6. Separate the meat from the bones; we won’t need the bones.
