A video recording and reproducing apparatus is provided which is capable of, even if the number of elementary streams (ES) of bits of a program to be recorded is too large and all the elementary streams can hardly be recorded, carrying out a recording operation with ease substantially corresponding to the direction of the user. The apparatus allows an ES selector to identify the elementary streams of video data, audio data, and their relevant data video in the stream of bits received from its program selector and, when the number of the elementary streams is higher than a given setting, pick up elementary streams which satisfy the predetermined requirements while deleting the other elementary streams. The elementary streams are then recorded by a recorder/player in the apparatus. Even if the elementary streams of bits are not all recorded, the elementary streams which satisfy the predetermined requirements can readily be recorded.