Bigos in Polish; very tasty

Bigos in Polish - very tasty

Traditional bigos in Polish is a very famous and popular dish. And there is nothing unusual in this - after all, bigos is nourishing, delicious, very tasty, and is absolutely not difficult to prepare. You can create bigos on the stove, in a saucepan, but it comes out even better in a slow cooker. Don't believe me? Try it and see for yourself!

Ingredients for 4-5 servings:

pork pulp – 400 g;
smoked hunting sausages - 200 g;
fresh white cabbage - 0.5 kg;
sauerkraut – 400 – 500 g;
carrots - 1 piece;
onions 1-2 pcs;
dark peppercorns – 2 pcs;
salt, dark ground pepper, spices for pork - to taste;
vegetable oil – 2-3 tablespoons.

How to cook bigos in a slow cooker

We choose moderately fatty pork of good quality. It is better to use fresh meat rather than frozen. For bigus, you can use different parts of pork: shoulder, back, neck. We wash the meat in cool water and dry it. Cut the meat into small, approximately 2-3 cm, cubes.

Pour vegetable oil into the multicooker and turn on the “Frying” mode. We warm it up perfectly. Add pieces of meat and fry until golden brown, turning occasionally. This takes approximately 10-15 minutes.

Peel the carrots, wash and cut into narrow strips (or three on a large grater). Peel the onion and rinse. Cut the onion into thin half rings. Add onions and carrots to the multicooker bowl, stir and fry for another 5-10 minutes until soft, stirring occasionally.

Pour boiling water over the meat and vegetables so that all the meat is covered. Add salt, dark ground pepper, peppercorns and meat spices. Don’t forget that you should add less salt for now – after all, sauerkraut will be added. Switch the multicooker to the “stew” mode and cook for 30 minutes.

We clean the fresh cabbage from the outer leaves and cut it thinly. Remove the sauerkraut from the brine and place in a colander. If your cabbage is very sour, soak it in water beforehand, otherwise the bigos will turn out very sour. The soaking time for cabbage varies depending on its taste.

Place fresh and sauerkraut in the multicooker bowl and mix with meat. Turn the multicooker back on to the “stew” mode and cook for approximately 1 hour. We taste the bigos for salt and spices; add as needed.

Cut the smoked sausages into small rings.

Place the hunting sausages in the bigos, mix and cook in the “stew” mode for another hour.

Leave the finished bigos in the closed slow cooker for another 30 minutes.

After that it can be served to the table. You see, the recipe is not difficult; even a novice housewife can handle the process of making it.

Bigus in a slow cooker

Ingredients

Onions – 1.5 pcs.

Vegetable oil – 50 ml

Pickled white cabbage – 500 g

Fresh white cabbage – 250 g

Tomato paste – 0.75 tbsp.

130 kcal
1 hour 20 minutes
1 hour 20 minutes

Photo of the finished dish

Step-by-step recipe with photos

As you know, bigus is sauerkraut stewed with meat. I bring to your attention a recipe for bigus, which has taken root in our family.

In order for the finished dish not to be extremely sour, it is customary to supplement sauerkraut (dilute) with fresh cabbage. My meat is pork, which is more typical of authentic Hungarian bigus than beef or chicken. Making bigus in a slow cooker will reduce your efforts to a minimum. Let's get started!

To prepare bigus from cabbage (sauerkraut and fresh) in a slow cooker, prepare pork, onions, carrots, vegetable oil, sauerkraut, fresh white cabbage, water, tomato paste, salt.

Cut the meat into cubes, the onion into half rings, and grate the carrots on a coarse grater. On the “Frying” program, heat the vegetable oil in a multicooker saucepan, transfer the meat and vegetables into it.

How to cook bigus in a slow cooker

Bigus, or bigos, is one of the most recognizable dishes of Polish and Lithuanian cuisine, which has won many fans in other countries, including Russia. Like almost all other famous dishes, you can cook bigus in a slow cooker , which is what we will do at the moment.

Bigus is stewed cabbage with various meat products. The beauty of this dish is that, like hodgepodge, it can be prepared from a wide variety of goods that are at hand. Only cabbage remains constant; in general, you can prepare bigus from either fresh cabbage or sauerkraut, or you can mix them. But virtually any meat products are acceptable. Bigus is prepared with sausage, meat, frankfurters, smoked meats, game, lard - virtually any meat and meat products will do, and they can be combined in random proportions.

Often mushrooms, tomatoes and even prunes and reddish wine are also added to bigus. And in the ancient Polish recipe, the principal, obligatory ingredient of bigus was smoked game meat. In general, I haven’t gotten to such culinary delights yet and prepared bigus from sauerkraut and fresh cabbage with beef, sausages and boiled-smoked sausage in a slow cooker.

Traditional recipe for bigus in a slow cooker.

What you need to take for bigus:

350-400 grams of beef
350 grams of various smoked meats: sausage, brisket, ham, sausages
350 grams of sauerkraut
350 grams of fresh cabbage
one large onion
two tablespoons of tomato paste
2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil
half a multi-cooker cup of hot water

How to cook bigus in a slow cooker:

We wash the beef, cut it into pieces or thin strips.

Peel the onion and chop it into half rings.

I cut the sausages into slices, the brisket into cubes, and the sausage into cubes.

Shred the freshest cabbage.

Pour sunflower oil into the multicooker and fry the beef in the “baking” mode for 20 minutes.

Add onions, chopped sausages and smoked meats.

Add the tomato paste and continue cooking for another 10 minutes with the lid closed.

Add fresh and sauerkraut, pour half a glass of hot water into the multicooker

Stir and cook for the remaining 10 minutes. In total, we cooked in the “baking” mode for 40 minutes.

As soon as the signal sounds, we switch to the “quenching” mode for 1.5 hours. During this period of time, both cabbage and even beef will melt in your mouth.

After the signal, the bigus in the multicooker was ready! Place on plates and serve! Well, it turned out very tasty! Bon appetit!

Bigus in a slow cooker

Among the dishes of Polish and Baltic cuisine, one of the most favorite among our fellow citizens is bigus. It is prepared from fresh and sauerkraut with the addition of meat, sausages, mushrooms, sausages and other ingredients. The corresponding personality of the dish is the slightly sour taste and rich aroma, made by the harmonious combination of meat products, stewed cabbage, spices and herbs. The only drawback of this dish is that it is not very quickly prepared. After all, cabbage and meat need to be stewed until they become soft. This problem does not bother those who make bigus in a slow cooker. While the smart unit is stewing the dish, the housewife can do any other business or just relax without worrying about the bigus burning.

Individual manufacturing

Bigus in a slow cooker can be prepared from all the ingredients usually used for this dish. But regardless of the recipe you choose, it doesn’t hurt to follow the advice of experienced chefs.

You should not choose old animal meat for bigus. It takes a lot of time to make. And when it finally becomes quite soft, the cabbage will turn into an amorphous mass. In addition, the meat of young animals is always more tender and more pleasant to the taste.
Frozen meat is also not the best choice for bigus. It may turn out to be dry and tasteless during production. This happens due to a violation of the structure of the product when it is defrosted incorrectly. If you are willing to be patient and wait for the meat to thaw on the top shelf of the refrigerator, you can choose a frozen product. Otherwise, you should discard it in favor of fresh or chilled meat.
According to classical technology, the meat must be fried before combining it with cabbage. To do this, select the “Frying” or “Baking” program in the multicooker. Next, the bigus is prepared in the “Stewing” program. But when making in a slow cooker, the step of frying the meat is skipped from time to time. In this case, the unit is immediately started in extinguishing mode, but the timer is set for a longer time.
To prevent the bigus from burning, add wine, tomato juice or just water to the slow cooker.
Bigus gets its pleasant sourness from sauerkraut, which is most often included in the recipe. In addition, lemon juice, wine, tomatoes or tomato paste diluted with water can add sourness to bigus. You shouldn’t overdo it with these ingredients, because if you create a dish that is very sour, you won’t want to eat it.

Bigus can be served not only hot, but also cool. It will become even tastier if it sits for several hours after preparation. Therefore, this dish is often eaten the next day.

Bigus with beef in a slow cooker

fresh cabbage – 0.6 kg;
beef – 0.4 kg;
onions – 100 g;
carrots – 150 g;
sweet pepper – 0.2 kg;
tomato paste – 30 ml;
water – 100 ml;
salt, spices - to taste;
vegetable oil – 60 ml.

Rinse the beef and dry it with cardboard napkins. Cut it into thin long pieces, as for beef stroganoff.
Wash the cabbage, remove the top leaves, which are often limp. Cut the cabbage into squares with a side length of about 1.5–2 cm.
Rinse the pepper. Cut off its stalk, cut it lengthwise into 4 parts, simultaneously removing the seeds. Cut into strips.
Peel and rinse the carrots. Grind using a grater. It is better to use the side with large holes.
Remove the skins from the onion. Cut the onion into small pieces.
Dilute tomato paste with water.
Pour oil into the multicooker bowl. Put meat in it. Turn on the “Frying” mode, or, if not, turn on the “Baking” mode. If the multicooker model allows it, you need to fry the meat with the lid open, stirring occasionally. Otherwise, the multicooker will have to be paused several times to mix the meat. The total time for frying meat, regardless of the selected program, is 10 minutes.
Add onions and carrots to the meat. Without changing the mode, fry them together with the meat for 5 minutes.
Add pepper, continue cooking for another 5 minutes in the same mode.
Place cabbage in the slow cooker and salt it. Add spices. Pour in water with tomato paste diluted in it.
Lower the lid and activate the “Extinguishing” program for 60 minutes.
Leave the dish in the heating mode for another half hour.

Bigus with pork

pork – 0.4 kg;
fresh cabbage – 0.5 kg;
sauerkraut – 0.5 kg;
water – 0.25 l;
vegetable oil – 40 ml;
onions – 0.2 kg;
carrots – 150 g;
tomato paste – 20 ml;
salt, spices - to taste.

Wash the piece of pork and dry it with kitchen napkins.
Cut the pork into small cubes, about 1.5 cm in size.
Wash the sauerkraut, drain and squeeze with your hands.
Finely chop the fresh cabbage.
Mix fresh cabbage with sauerkraut.
Grind the peeled carrots on a small grater.
Cut the peeled onion into small cubes.
Pour oil into the multicooker container. Place pork, onions and carrots in it. Fry them for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. The “Frying” program is normally suitable for frying ingredients, but not all devices have it. If there is no such program, the “Baking” program can successfully replace it.
Add cabbage, salt, spices. Fill with water, having previously diluted the tomato paste in it. Start the multicooker in stewing mode for 1 hour.

Bigus prepared according to this recipe in a slow cooker comes out juicy and satisfying. It has a pleasant aroma and slight sourness. It can be served for the second course or as a snack with strong alcoholic drinks.

Bigus with sausage

smoked sausage – 0.2 kg;
boiled sausage – 0.2 kg;
sauerkraut – 1 kg;
carrots – 0.3 kg;
onions – 0.2 kg;
vegetable oil – 50 ml;
butter – 40 g;
spices - to taste.

Cut the boiled sausage into cubes about 1 cm in size, cut the smoked sausage into strips.
Thoroughly wash the cabbage in running water.
Peel the carrots and onions. Grind the carrots on a grater with small holes, finely chop the onion with a knife.
Pour vegetable oil into the multicooker and place the sausage in it. Run the “Baking” program for 15 minutes.
5 minutes after the program starts, stir the sausage, add onions and carrots to it. After frying the sausage and vegetables for 5 minutes, stir everything again and leave to fry until the end of the program.
Add sauerkraut to the sausage. Place spices on top. No need to add salt. Run the “Baking” program for another half hour. 5 minutes before the end of the program, add butter.
When the program is completed, leave the bigus in the multicooker for another 15 minutes in heating mode.

Bigus must be stirred before serving. The gentle creamy taste that butter gives to cabbage is unlikely to leave anyone indifferent. And the smell of smoked meats will make the bigus even more appetizing.

Bigus with mushrooms

fresh cabbage – 0.4 kg;
sauerkraut – 150 g;
fresh mushrooms – 0.3 kg;
celery root – 50 g;
onions – 100 g;
tomato paste – 20 ml;
vegetable oil – 40 ml.

Shred the freshest cabbage.
Cut the mushrooms into thin slices.
Cut the onion into thin half rings.
Chop the celery root with a knife.
Pour oil into the multicooker bowl, place celery and onion in it.
Fry the vegetables in the frying or baking mode for 5 minutes, add the mushrooms and continue cooking in the same mode for another 5 minutes.
Turn off the multicooker. Place sauerkraut and fresh cabbage in it. Add tomato paste and very little salt.
Start the unit by selecting the “Quenching” program for half an hour.

Vegetarians will love this bigus. It can be eaten during Lent. With all this, bigus with mushrooms comes out filling, fragrant and very tasty.

Cooking bigus in a slow cooker is a pleasure. A minimum of effort will be required from the hostess, and the result will almost certainly live up to expectations.