Tomek's Bigos

Ingredients for 10 servings:

• 1 white cabbage
• 1 kg pork for goulash, diced
• 500 g Kasseler ribs
• 4 tomatoes
• 3 grains of allspice
• 2 bay leaves
• 140 g tomato paste, concentrated (equivalent to 2 small cans)
• 4 vegetable stock cubes
• 2 liters of water
• 2 large onions
• 1 handful of porcini mushrooms, dried
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 30 minutes

Polish cabbage stew, a national dish.

First, finely chop the cabbage, preferably quartering it, and then cut strips about half a centimeter thick. Slice the onions into rings. Place the cabbage, stock cubes, and onions in a large pot and pour in the water. Let it simmer for a while, then add the whole tomatoes. After 30 seconds, remove the tomatoes, peel them, quarter them, and add them back in. Add the pork goulash and smoked pork, and season with salt and pepper. After a while, remove the smoked pork, remove the bones, chop them up, and return them to the pot. Add the tomato paste, bay leaves, allspice, and mushrooms, and stir everything together. Simmer the bigos for 1.5 to 2 hours, making sure it doesn’t burn. Variations: if desired, you can add diced potatoes, caraway seeds, or a splash of red wine.