Authentic Hungarian Goulash Soup Recipe by Endre Barath, Jr.

My goal with this post, is to make the best Goulash or should I say, create the closest to the Hungarian version possibly outside of Hungary. In my opinion, this meal has been so transformed all over the globe, that I can only hope you have forgotten what you tasted and only remember the name. Often I have seen in quaint restaurants on the menu, ‘a meal ‘that they called Hungarian Goulash and I just cringed when I tasted it. The meal was OK but how dare they call it Hungarian Goulash. They should have said a takeoff or a version modeled after the Hungarian Goulash.

I will try to make this relatively easy and healthy for those cold evenings you decide to make this great concoction to eat.

Ingredients:

•         3 or 4 table spoon of cooking oil (I prefer extra virgin cold pressed olive oil) of your choice, or the Hungarian version which would be to use lard.
•         1 medium onion finely chopped (I prefer sweet onions; if you like yellow onions use them) the Hungarian version is the yellow onion.
•         1-2 teaspoon of paprika try to get your hands on real Hungarian Paprika. Keep in mind that there are many variations of this delicacy. Some are hot, others are medium hot or mild. (since Diane is on a restricted spice diet, I would only use the mild one and that is mostly for color and taste), FYI the Hungarians you mild as well for coloring.
•         Pinch of caraway seeds freshly ground time permitting
•         4-5 cups of beef stock, or beef broth or bouillon cube with water. If you do not eat red meat than chicken stock or the other variation should do (keep in mind it will not be authentic but still will taste good)
•         1- 2 cloves of garlic; those of you who just want the flavor use a tooth pick so you can throw away once the flavors blended. I like the flavor so I finely chop them.
•         Half a medium sized green or yellow pepper (places like Whole Foods or Farmers markets sell Hungarian Style peppers) they have a bit of a bite, if you prefer milder than use a regular bell pepper (not quite the same but close enough).
•         About ½ lbs. of potatoes (I like Yukon Gold or yellow potatoes) need so that are firm and do not melt in the cooking process.
•         ½ lbs. of beef cubed (half inch cubes are the ideal size) now if you replace it with Chicken Breasts it tastes good but it is not authentic Goulash. Hungarians usually use beef or pork.
•         One medium carrot
•         One medium parsley root (if they are small than use two or three) No not Parsnip… it is totally different in flavor. Some people use Parsnip it does make it a bit sweeter than the original meal.
•         Half a medium celery root (if not available use two stalks of celery including the leaves)
•         Plucked pasta (this is the Hungarian version), if you cannot find this in a specialty store and do not feel like making fresh pasta substitute Israeli couscous (they are the size a bit smaller than pea-size but should work) If interested I will write a recipe for the “plucked pasta”
•         One or two tomatoes and a little tomato paste to thicken the soup (no do not thicken with rue)
•         Bay leaf

The above ingredients are a guide, the better you want this to taste the more generous you need to be with the meat and potatoes.

If you want to make it truly authentic than cook this meal in a Kettle or a Le Creuset Soup pot.  Now it you want to be truly authentic then serve this soup in small kettles.

So, with that said Sautee the garlic and the onions, add the meat and all the spices with a little bit of salt and pepper. After a bit of browning add all the root vegetables. Then add the stock and peppers let it simmer for about 14-20 then add the potatoes and adjust the seasoning… if need be adding more stock and meat as well as potatoes. Once the potatoes are done the meal is done.

Of course, adjust to taste with salt and pepper, some Hungarian cooks add Pepper Corn into the soup while cooking it. If you want to be totally authentic, then serve it hot with fresh white Baggett and dried hot paprika pods (or any good hot pepper should be red)

 

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