Hungarian Goulash

About This Recipe

Gulyás is Hungary's national dish and one of the great stews of the world, born on the vast puszta grasslands where Hungarian herdsmen (gulyások) cooked dried beef in a cauldron (bogrács) over open fires. The defining ingredient is sweet Hungarian paprika — used in extraordinary quantity to colour the stew a vivid brick-red and lend it a warm, complex sweetness. Authentic Hungarian goulash is a soup-stew, more liquid than many Western versions, built on beef shin or shoulder, onions, tomatoes, green peppers, caraway and marjoram. Potatoes are added towards the end to thicken the broth naturally. It is served in deep bowls with crusty white bread for mopping.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 1 kgbeef shin or chuck(cut into 3cm cubes)
• 3 largeonions(finely diced)
• 4 tablespoonssweet Hungarian paprika
• 1 teaspoonhot Hungarian paprika or cayenne
• 3 mediumpotatoes(peeled, cut into 2cm chunks)
• 2 mediumtomatoes(roughly chopped)
• 2green peppers(deseeded, roughly chopped)
• 4 clovesgarlic(minced)
• 1 teaspooncaraway seeds
• 1 teaspoondried marjoram
• 2 tablespoonslard or vegetable oil
• 1.5 litresbeef stock or water
• salt and black pepper(to taste)

Instructions

1. 1

   Fry the onions

   Heat the lard or oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onions and cook slowly for 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until deep golden and very soft. This patient caramelisation is the flavour foundation of the dish.

2. 2

   Add the paprika

   Remove the pot from the heat for a moment (this is important — paprika burns at high heat and turns bitter). Add all the paprika and the caraway seeds, stir into the onions, then return to medium heat. Fry for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.

3. 3

   Brown the beef

   Add the beef cubes to the pot, season well with salt, and stir to coat in the paprika-onion base. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes until the beef is lightly browned all over.

4. 4

   Add aromatics and liquid

   Add the garlic, green peppers, tomatoes and marjoram. Stir together, then pour in the stock or water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer. Partially cover and cook for 1 hour 30 minutes until the beef is very tender.

5. 5

   Add the potatoes

   Add the potato chunks to the stew and cook uncovered for a further 20–25 minutes until the potatoes are tender and the broth has thickened slightly. The stew should be brothy — this is not a thick European stew but a rich, paprika-red soup.

6. 6

   Taste and serve

   Taste and adjust seasoning. The goulash should taste deeply of sweet paprika, with savoury beef and a gentle warmth. Ladle into deep bowls and serve with thick-cut crusty white bread. Sour cream on the side is optional but traditional in many households.

Variations

• •

  Bográcsgulyás is the traditional version cooked outdoors in a cauldron over an open wood fire.

• •

  Add egg noodles (csipetke) made from a stiff flour-egg dough pinched into the stew for the final 10 minutes.

• •

  Vegetarian: swap the protein for roasted king oyster mushrooms, smoked tofu or cooked chickpeas — adjust seasoning slightly upward to compensate.

• •

  Spicier: add a finely chopped fresh chile or a teaspoon of crushed Aleppo/Urfa pepper to the aromatics for warm, layered heat instead of a single sharp hit.

Storage

Goulash improves significantly overnight. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Frequently Asked Questions