"Bulit" Polish potato and bacon stew

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 1 kg potatoes
• 3 bay leaves
• 5 allspice berries
• 10 peppercorns
• 250 g bacon cubes
• 1 onion(s)
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup sour cream
• dill
• chives
• Vinegar
• 6 eggs
• 6 herring fillets
• some flour to bind
• salt and pepper
• Sugar

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour

an old family recipe

Peel and dice the potatoes. Place them in a large pot and fill halfway with water. Add the bay leaves, allspice, and peppercorns and bring to a boil. Dice the bacon and fry in a separate pan over medium heat. If you like more bacon, you can add more. After about 15 minutes of cooking time, add the bacon to the potatoes. Add the buttermilk and sour cream and season with salt, pepper, sugar, and vinegar. The stew should have a slightly tart taste, but not too sour. (Unfortunately, there are no exact quantities, as my grandma always cooks to taste.) Add the finely chopped dill and chives, if desired. When the potatoes are soft, thicken everything with flour. To do this, mix the flour with the water in a cup, preferably with a whisk to avoid lumps. Stir into the stew and bring to a boil until thickened. Now finely dice the onion and add it to the hot, but not boiling, soup. Serve with herring and soft-boiled eggs. Serve the herring and eggs on the plate. My grandmother used to cook this dish in Poland during the war. It’s cheap, tasty, and filling.