| Several years ago my husband and I attended a | | | | Complete Round-the-World Meat Cookbook," |
| conference in Warsaw, Poland. Our hotel catered to | | | | published in 1967. Hers is the classic recipe, with fresh |
| travelers and had a cozy coffee shop where | | | | cabbage, sauerkraut, pork and wine. I have adapted |
| travelers sipped pressed tea and savored some of | | | | Waldo's recipe to my family's taste and health needs. |
| nation's national dishes. I had mushroom soup and, as | | | | 2 tablespoons extra light olive oil |
| near as I could figure out, it was made with wild | | | | 1 cup chopped yellow onions |
| mushrooms and heavy cream. | | | | 2 pound boneless pork roast, fat removed, and cut into |
| Interestingly, I did not have Bigos while I was in Poland, I | | | | cubes |
| had it at home. The stew reminds me of Hungarian | | | | 1 pound of polish sausage, thickly sliced |
| Goulash Soup, which contains meat, potatoes, | | | | 3 cups shredded fresh cabbage |
| tomatoes, and caraway seeds. | | | | 1 pound of sauerkraut, drained |
| There are many variations of Bigos. Some call for | | | | 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced |
| pork, while others call for ham or beef. Polish sausage | | | | 1 box of button mushrooms, sliced |
| is also added to the dish, along with apples and prunes. | | | | 1 8-ounce can of salt-free tomato sauce |
| This is one of those recipes that tastes better the | | | | 1 cup lower salt beef broth |
| next day. And the next. | | | | 3/4 cup dry red wine |
| According to Wikipedia, Bigos is a Lithuanian dish and | | | | 1 teaspoon lower sodium salt |
| goes back to the year 1385. However, "Polish linguists | | | | 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper |
| trace the word Bigos to a German rather than a | | | | 1 teaspoon garlic powder |
| Lithuanian origin." Apparently the word means | | | | 1 teaspoon caraway seeds |
| confusion or big mess. But this tasty stew, eaten with | | | | 1 or 2 bay leaves |
| rye bread and potatoes, is far from a mess. It is a | | | | Prepared mashed potatoes (homemade or frozen) |
| wonderful combination of flavors. | | | | Pour olive oil into Dutch oven, soup kettle or large oven |
| The Astray website has posted a recipe for the | | | | casserole dish. Add the onions and the pork. Cook |
| national dish. In all, there are two and a half pounds of | | | | over medium heat until the meat is brown. Add all of |
| meat (beef and Polish sausage), fresh mushrooms, | | | | the remaining ingredients, cover, and bake in a 325 |
| sauerkraut, white wine, tomato sauce, caraway seeds, | | | | degree oven for 2 1/2 hours, stirring twice. Remove |
| and soy sauce. Surprisingly, the reicpe does not call for | | | | bay leaves. Serve immediately with mashed potatoes |
| fresh cabbage. | | | | and a green salad. Makes 6-8 geneous servings. |
| Myra Waldo includes a Bigos recipe in her book, "The | | | | |