Hungarian Goulash : Ah, Goulash!

Ranked #845 in Food & Cooking, #15,819 overall

Where's the beef? Well, it just might be in the goulash : the Hungarian Goulash!

Do you remember having stew as a child?  I hope you liked it! Think of this goulash as a stew, a stew Hungarian style. That's Hungarian Goulash! It sure seems like I ate lots of delicious stew when I was a youngster growing up in Cleveland in Northeastern, Ohio. And, lots of Hungarian foods like goulash too! I am eternally grateful to the fond food memories, instilled in me, thanks to my wonderful grandma, Julia Nagy.

Goulash is known as Gulyás in Hungarian.  That name originates from the word "gulya" meaning herd of cattle or "cowherd."  Where's the beef?

Where is the beef?  It's probably in the goulash.  Hungarian Goulash and Stuffed Cabbage are two Hungarian foods which are top of my list of favorite comfort foods.

I took this picture of Hungarian Goulash during our vacation to Hungary and Romania. It was actually "Made in Hungary," "shot in Hungary," and finally "eaten in Hungary!" 


Hungarian Goulash with Mashed Potato to Give as a GiftHungarian Goulash with Mashed Potato to Give as a GiftHungarian Goulash with Mashed Potato to Give as a GiftHungarian Goulash with Mashed Potato to Give as a GiftHungarian Goulash with Mashed Potato to Give as a GiftHungarian Goulash with Mashed Potato to Give as a Gift

Hungarian Goulash : Ah, Goulash! was originally created on March 30, 2006.

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Hungarian Goulash :: Made and Eaten in Hungary 

In a nutshell, what is Hungarian Goulash?

Think of American Stew!

Goulash is similar to American Stew, but I think, much better! It is a hot dish, originally from Hungary, made of beef, onions, red peppers and paprika powder.

In some regions of the United States, the term goulash can be used interchangeably with hot dish and casserole.

It is most often prepared as a stew and served with boiled or mashed potatoes, polenta or dumplings.

What is different about Hungarian cooking?

What makes Hungarian Goulash SO good???

Hungary is known for its exotic, tasty and spicy food and delicious wine. In general, the preference is for rich and spicy sauces, stews and sweets over rather "drier" dishes. In particular, the liberal use of a few special ingredients which give it its own inimitable and original flavour.

These are first of all red pepper, fresh green peppers and tomatoes, sour cream and lard. The use of lard or goose-fat instead of other forms of fat for cooking is traditional and certainly typical but nowadays more and more Hungarians are worried about the cholesterol content of lard, so often other fats are substituted.

June Meyer's Hungarian Goulash Recipe

Authentic & World Famous

  • 2 lb. beef chuck, 1 tsp. salt, 2 onions, white or yellow, 2 Tbsp. lard or shortening, 2 Tbsp. imported sweet paprika (most important to use real hungarian paprika for ultimate flavor), 2 bay leaves, 1 qt. water, 4 peeled and diced potatoes, 1/4 tsp. black pepper.
  • Cut beef into 1 inch squares, add 1/2 tsp. salt. Chop onions and brown in shortening, add beef and paprika. Let beef simmer in its own juice along with salt and paprika for 1 hr. on low heat.
  • Add water, diced potatoes and remaining salt. Cover and simmer until potatoes are done and meat is tender.
  • Prepare egg dumpling batter: 1 egg, 6 Tbsp. flour, 1/8 tsp. salt.
  • Add flour to unbeaten egg and salt. Mix well. Let stand for 1/2 hour for flour to mellow.
  • Drop by teaspoonful into goulash. Cover and simmer 5 minutes after dumplings rise to surface.
  • Serve hot with dollops of sour cream. Serves 6.

Hungarian Cuisine Ingredients -- It's in the Goulash

Ingredients for Beef Goulash
Ingredients for Beef Goulash Photographic Print
Eising, Susie M.
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The most well-known specialities of the Hungarian cuisine such as goulash soup, or "Gulyásleves", the different varieties of stew or "pörkölt" etc. are red with paprika.

It should be noted that dishes flavoured with paprika need not be hot. In fact, some of the finest brands of paprika are not strong at all.

Fresh green peppers and tomatoes are also frequently used to flavour these dishes, the essence of which is the same: braise any kind of meat in lard/oil with onions, and season it richly with red pepper.

Sour Cream is an essential ingredient in many Hungarian dishes too. It is a basic ingredient of "paprikash" (any kind of meat or just plain potatoes prepared in paprika sauce, to which sour cream has been added), as well as in many Hungarian vegetable dishes and casserole stews.

Vote for your favorite Hungarian Cuisine Ingredients

I'm stirring the pot and curious as to what your favorite ingredients are from this goulash list! ;-)

Paprika
Paprika Art Print
Meisen, Michael
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Paprika

11 points

Sour Cream

9 points

Dumplings

9 points

Garlic

7 points

Red Peppers

5 points

Green Onions

4 points

Potatoes

4 points

Bay Leaves

3 points

Carrots

2 points

10

Green Peppers

2 points

11

Yellow Peppers

2 points

12

White Asparagus

1 point

Pictures of Hungarian Ingredients and More!

You may find these in the Hungarian Goulash too!

In May 2004, we traveled to the famous spa town Heviz, arriving for a special street festival. Vendors displayed their carts of these beautiful vegetables, including red and yellow peppers, garlic, green onions, carrots, and white asparagus. The FIRST four pictures of this slideshow showcase those Hungarian ingredients ... and the rest of the slideshow gives you a taste for Everything Eastern European!



curated content from Flickr

Paprika: Hungarian Goulash Spice

Also known as the pepper fruit.

Paprika, Capsicum annuum, is a sweet-to-mildly hot cultivar of the chile pepper of the family Solanaceae. It is cultivated for its fruit, which are dried and used as a spice or seasoning. C.annuum is a native of South America; however it is cultivated most extensively in Hungary.

The English word was borrowed directly from Hungarian, which in turn borrowed the term from the adjacent Slavic peoples.

Kalocsa Sweet Hungarian Style Paprika

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Facts about Paprika

  • Hungary is famous for this spice.
  • Paprikas produced especially in Kalocsa on the Danube and Szeged on the Tisza are the best in the world.
  • The rose paprika, made from choice dark red pods that have a sweet flavour and aroma, is generally considered the finest variety.
  • A sharper Hungarian variety, Koenigspaprika, or king's paprika, is made from the whole pepper.
  • Hungarian paprika is characterized by a hotter taste, achieved in recent times by adding hot, red capsicum pepper to ground paprika.
  • Its bright colour makes it an excellent garnish for nonsweet, light-coloured foods.
  • It is especially associated with Hungarian cuisine and is essential for such hot, spicy, Hungarian stew dishes as gulyás (called goulash in the United States), pörkölt, paprikás, and tokány.

Paprika used in Hungarian Goulash has Vitamin C !

It is good for you

Paprika is noted for its high vitamin C content (150-250 mg/100 g). In fact, vitamin C was first isolated by Hungarian scientist Albert Szent-Györgyi from Hungarian paprika.

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1937
"for his discoveries in connection with the biological combustion processes, with special reference to vitamin C and the catalysis of fumaric acid."

A special lens on Paprika!

Buy a Hungarian Cookbook!

June Meyer is the recommended choice!

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Cooking Hungarian Goulash?

Here are a few excellent choices for a good cooking pot!

This reliable vessel from Le Creuset features the manufacturer's signature combination of cast iron and coated enamel. The piece not only retains and distributes heat evenly; its strong surface resists scratches, stains, and the damaging effects of regular household use. The accompanying round lid fits evenly with its base and traps in moisture to preserve flavor. A black, Phenolic knob centered on its surface resists heating while two loop handles flank the main body and facilitate transport. Hand washing is recommended and each Le Creuset cast iron product comes with a lifetime warranty.

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Other Goulash Recipes

I've selected a few for you to try!

Amanda's Hungarian Goulash
Hungarian goulash from www.cdkitchen.com.
Chuck Taggert's Hungarian Goulash
Chuck's recipe is worth trying.
Cooks.com List of Recipes
Cooks.com has a special Hungarian goulash recipe.
My House and Garden
Yet another recipe to try!
Susannah's Hungarian Goulash
Last, but not least, Susannah's recipe.

Hungarian Restaurant

The Paprikash Restaurant, 5210 W. Diversey (at Laramie), Chicago, IL 60639 has garnered a reputation for fine Hungarian food. Check out their menu! Telephone: 773.736.4949.

Goulash Info

Goulash Defined
Free information from Wikipedia Encyclopedia.
Hungarian Cooking
What is different about Hungarian Cooking?
June Meyer Recipe
The official June Meyer recipe page.
The Albert Szent-Gyorgyi Papers
Read about the discovery of Vitamin C content in Paprika!

"Goulash" pictures

Polish - Hungarian Fusion Cuisine by ntcrwler
Goulash by Dushan and Miae
Potatoes by jchapiewsky
Goulash by Dushan and Miae
VaMoKoLaHa 2011 by Dushan and Miae
VaMoKoLaHa 2011 by Dushan and Miae
automatically generated by Flickr

Decorative Serving Plate

Wouldn't Hungarian Goulash look great on Kalocsa?

The Hungarians are known for their pottery and fabulously-decorated stoneware such as those from Kalocsa. The word Kalocsa originates from the Latin "colocae," literally meaning "made from mud."

We found these plates at the street festival in Heviz, Hungary. What a beautiful serving plate for presenting Hungarian goulash.

I've found similar plates also available on eBay! Imagine that.

I love Kalocsa!

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Hungarian Herend Porcelain

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A special lens on Kalocsa and one on Hungarian Spaetzle!

Serve your Hungarian Goulash on Kalocsa!

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Got a Great Hungarian Goulash Recipe?

Love that Hungarian Goulash?

Still Life with Various Hungarian Peppers
Still Life with Various Hungarian Peppers Photographic Print
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Do you have a great goulash recipe? Maybe you know of a great restaurant that serves Hungarian goulash? Or, have you been to Hungary and experienced the cuisine? I'd love you to take a moment and tell me about it. Thanks!

Oh, want to know more about June Meyer? I'd say she's an example of the power of word of mouth!



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It's Everything Hungarian and Eastern European

An alphabetical look at some of JaguarJulie's topics!

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About the Hungarian Author JaguarJulie : Ah, Goulash!

Writing about Everything Hungarian and Eastern European is a popular theme of mine!

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Hungarian Goulash : Ah, Goulash! was originally created on March 30, 2006.
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