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+ servings

Polish Bigos (Hunters Stew)

Birdwood Venison
A hearty slow-cooked dish, that will taste best on the second day. You can keep it simple with venison and mushrooms, or supplement half of the venison with pork, beef and/or rabbit.
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Course Main
Servings 6 people

Ingredients
  

  • 1 kg Birdwood Venison (cuts such as round, silverside or topside work well)
  • 150 gms Birdwood Venison Landjaeger (Hunters’ Sausage)
  • 200 gms mixed mushrooms (foraged Saffron Pine Mushrooms and Slippery Jacks plus supermarket Swiss Browns and Enoki)
  • 100 gms dried wild mushroom (foraged Adelaide Hills Porcini)
  • 150 gms prunes, pitted
  • 1 bottle good red wine
  • 3 onions, chopped
  • 500 gms sauerkraut (500g for the faint hearted, 1kg for the bold)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 8 juniper berries, crushed
  • 1 Tbsp vegetable stock powder
  • olive oil
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
 

  • Rehydrate the mushrooms by placing in boiling water for 30 minutes then draining and repeating. Alternatively, we powder our harvested porcinis and use this as required.
  • Heat olive oil in a large pan and brown onions and then add the venison and brown all sides.
  • Add the sauerkraut, bay leaves, juniper berries, half the wine, half the mushrooms and seasoning – cover all ingredients with water.
  • Bring to the boil then reduce the heat, add the mushrooms and any liquid if you rehydrated the mushrooms. Simmer for at least 2 hours. Add the rest of the wine and allow flavours to develop overnight/for several hours without direct heat.

The next day prior to serving

  • Ensure there is enough fluid and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and add the Landjaeger mushrooms and prunes and continue to simmer. Do not let it dry out, top up with water as required.
  • After 2 hours add the vegetable stock powder and adjust to taste with salt and pepper.
  • Serve with hearty winter sides such as mashed potato, pickled forest mushrooms, beetroot and radish salad and fried red cabbage.
Keyword Game, Meat,
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