Polish Cabbage - Kapusta

Yes the Polish theme goes on!  This is one of our favourite winter meals.  It is very hearty and full of flavour.  We always eat it with lashings of creamy mashed potato, but you could have it as a side-dish with a meaty main.  I think it would go quite well with lamb or pork (neither of which we eat, but you may).  Surprisingly, this is NOT from Sugared Orange, the Polish recipe book I have been happily working through of late.

I first saw a version of this made on TV years ago.  Remember Gabriel Gate?  He of the outrageous French accent, who currently shows off French cuisine during the Tour de France each year.  His guest one morning was Anna Volska the Polish-Australian actress, who made Polish cabbage on screen.  Now I am sure I have forgotten a lot of what she did, and over time have adjusted it to our liking, so you probably can't say it is very Polish but it is warming and delicious, and that is what you need on a cold winter's night.  So grab yourself some cabbage and get going!

ingredients:

2 tbs olive oil
2 onions (I used red but pick your fave kind)
2 cloves of garlic
1 small red chilli (optional)
250g. rindless bacon, chopped roughly
2 red apples, chopped into large chunks
1 mini drum head cabbage - about 700g. (but use sugarloaf or any kind you fancy)
600g. sauerkraut
1 tsp caraway seeds
1 tsp dill paste
1/4 cup white wine
3/4 cup pure apple juice
2 tsp raspberry vinegar
2-3 dashes of Tamari or soy sauce


Method:

Heat the olive oil in a large pan
Chop the onions and throw them in
Saute for a few minutes
Throw in the chopped garlic and chilli
Stir and keep an eye on them for a few minutes
In goes the bacon - and stir!
When the veggies and bacon look softened and tender, the apples go in
Shred the cabbage finely, and chuck into the pan
Stir the mixture well and cook down for about 10 minutes
Add the sauerkraut, caraway and dill
Pour in the wine and apple juice
Then the vinegar and tamari
Stir it well and simmer for about an hour and a half - give it a stir every 10 mins or so

I sometimes add juniper berries or mountain pepper berries if I have them to hand, or a bit of chicken stock or Worcestershire sauce to boost the flavour.  You can add more apples or cabbage or herbs; whatever takes your fancy.  (I made this late in the afternoon when the sun was going down.  Please excuse the shadows and wonky camera-work).

ingredients 

stirring in the bacon with the onions, garlic and chilli - see my gorgeous new spoon! 

shredding the cabbage

throwing in the cabbage   

starting to cook down  

the end result - with heaps of mash!  

okay so it looks more like a brussels sprout!
 but this is my cabbage doodle