I just recently found out that my best friend, Georgette, asked my dad for his Hungarian Goulash recipe and he wrote it out for her. The picture above is that very special recipe of which I am grateful she kept and shared with me. His recipe calls for a crock pot, however, I made it stove top and just kept an eye on the water level.
The important ingredient in this one is the seasoning pack, which you can get at Cost Plus World Markets, if they are in your area.
My mom and dad use to make this meal throughout my childhood. When she made it my dad would talk about how he grew up eating this dish and how his family had a Hungarian lineage. In fact, he would speak of memories of his mom making Hungarian Goulash for him when he was young. Unfortunately, his mom died when he was nine-years-old so I never had the chance to meet her.
I have updated this recipe below to reflect a few different ingredients than what my dad wrote down and how to make it without the spice pack. The recipe I have below doesn’t give measurements because it depends on how much meat you are putting in. You must taste the flavors along the way.
The picture below from the left, my dad, his mom, and his brother in 1936. Other picture below is my dad and me in San Diego 1998.
Ingredients:
Lean stew meat (chuck preferred)
Olive oil
Beef broth
Red wine
Yellow onion, diced
Tomato, diced
Red bell pepper, diced
Garlic, minced
Paprika
Marjoram
Caraway seeds, ground up a bit with a pestle (you can substitute fennel seeds)
Chili powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Carrots, sliced
Russet potatoes (peeled and diced)
Papardelle or a similar type of pasta or crusty bread
Directions:
Get a pan out that you will use to place the entire goulash in so it should be large enough to hold it all. Place some olive oil in that pan and add the diced onions until softened. Add tomato, bell pepper, spices, and garlic, continue to cook until softened.
Cut stew meat into 1 inch pieces, salt and pepper and brown in olive oil in a separate pan (sauté pan or cast iron). Once the meat is slightly browned, remove and deglaze the pan with red wine while leaving all the fat from the meat in the pan.
Add the meat, reduced wine, and broth into the vegetables and simmer on the stove top covered for several hours. Check periodically to make sure the broth is covering everything. If not, add more broth.
After two hours of cooking, slice the carrots and add to the simmering pan.
During the last hour of simmer, add potatoes and continue to simmer until potatoes are cooked through.
Taste the broth, adjust the spices to your liking, and enjoy!
Serve with pasta or crusty bread.
