Bigos (Polish Hunter's Stew)

by Tom Ashworth

20 servings

Dried Mushrooms

• 3 cupsdried mushrooms (porcini or other forest mushrooms)
• 3 cupswater, for soaking

Stew

• 500 gpork shoulder
• 500 gbeef chuck
• 2 tspsalt, for the meat
• black pepper, for the meat
• 4 to 6 tbspoil
• 12 slicessmoked bacon
• 2large onion
• 450 gbutton mushrooms
• 2 headssmall head of white cabbage
• 1000 gsmoked kielbasa
• 500 mlchicken, beef or vegetable stock
• 340 gtomato paste
• 4 tspsalt
• 8 to 10 leavesbay leaves
• 2 clovesgarlic
• 20whole black peppercorns
• 20whole allspice berries
• 1 tspground black pepper
• 3 kgsauerkraut
• 12pitted prunes