Stolz Kielbasa

The idea of this dish originally came from some close friends of ours. Often when we would go to their place for get togethers, they served a dish very similar to this one. One time, I asked what was in it and got a brief listing of the main ingredients. From there, I started to experiment, trying to duplicate/modify the recipe. One of the changes I was shooting for was to make the dish less sweet. While the sweetness was tasty as "football food," for a dinner main dish, I wanted something a little more savory. A fair bit of experimentation brought this end result. It is one of our favorite meals.

The first step is to slice the kielbasa into 1/3 inch coins and boil them to remove some of the fat. While you can skip this step in a pinch, there really is a difference in the end result. Let the kielbasa boil for a few minutes. Scum will form on the surface. Cut off the heat and spoon off the scum. Then drain the sausage.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a 13 x 9 inch glass baking dish, mix together all the remaining ingredients. If you can't find ground bay leaves, you can throw in 2 bay leaves instead. Just remember to pull them out of the sauce before serving.

Throw in the drained sausage and stir to coat. Smooth out and place in a 400 degree F oven.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the sauce is nice and thick. Let cool slightly before serving.


Stolz Kielbasa
Yield: serves 4

2 lb kielbasa, cut into 1/3" coins
1 large onion, diced
8 oz tomato sauce
1/2 cup dry red wine
3/4 cup catsup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground bay leaves (or two whole bay leaves)
1 TBS chili powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Boil the kielbasa in water for 3-5 minutes. Skim off the scum and then drain.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a 9 x 13 inch glass baking dish, mix the remaining ingredients. Add the drained sausage and stir to coat thoroughly. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the sauce is thick and bubbly and the edges of the sausages are browned. Let cool slightly before serving.