Authentic Hungarian Goulash
Authentic Hungarian goulash is a spicy speciality that has gained popularity around the world. It is never thickened with flour, has only a little sauce, and is based on equal parts onions and beef shin. This classic recipe makes a beef goulash that can be served with various side dishes to taste.
Prep: 2 h
Cook: 2 h
Servings: 4
Method
01.
First prepare the vegetables and only then the beef, so that the meat does not unnecessarily release its juices, minerals and other valuable substances. The ratio of beef to onions is strictly 1:1.
02.
Chop the onions finely. Do not be afraid of the large quantity; it gives the meat flavour and will break down during slow simmering. Authentic Hungarian goulash is never thickened with flour or anything else; it is the onions that give the goulash sauce its thickness.
03.
Cut the rinsed and dried meat into cubes about 4 x 5 cm in size.
04.
Heat the homemade pork lard in a pot. Put the onions into the hot lard and fry them, stirring constantly, until golden yellow and almost brown; be careful not to burn them. Briefly take the pot off the heat, add both ground paprikas and, stirring constantly, let them dissolve in the hot fat; again, be careful not to burn them. At this stage add a small amount of hot water and cook it off until only the fat remains. Repeat this process 2-3 times. Anyone who does not mind broken-down peppers and tomatoes can add them now.
05.
Add the beef to the paprika-onion base, do not salt, and literally fry the meat so that it absorbs the flavour of the onions and paprika, stirring constantly so that the paprika does not burn and become bitter. Fry for about 7-8 minutes. The meat will absorb the excellent flavour of the onions and paprika. When the meat has sealed and browned, only then salt it and add a small amount of hot water. Only now does slow simmering under a lid over medium heat begin. At the end the goulash should not have too much sauce, and the meat should be soft but by no means broken down.
06.
Add the finely chopped dried hot chilli pepper, including the seeds. Cut the green pepper into rings and the tomatoes into slices. If you do not have tomatoes, you can use tomato purée at 10 g per 1 kg of meat, but you must fry it. When the meat is half tender, add the green pepper and tomatoes. Out of season, add 350 g of homemade lečo for this amount of meat. On average, cooking the goulash takes 120-180 minutes.
07.
Serve authentic Hungarian goulash with homemade halušky or tarhonya, but steamed rice, boiled potatoes or boiled pasta are also suitable. In our country, homemade yeast dumplings are popular.
08.
For authentic Hungarian goulash, only beef shin is fundamentally used, or possibly beef neck, for its high content of glue - collagen, which is released during slow simmering and gives the goulash sauce its characteristic jelly-like quality. That is why it is not suitable to prepare goulash in a pressure cooker. The name goulash comes from the Hungarian word gulya - guja, meaning a herd of cattle, and from the word gulyás - gujáš, meaning a cattle herder. Goulash was originally prepared in a cauldron.
