Goulash originated about 1200 years
ago in Hungary as a heavily spiced soup or stew. Hungarian cowboys called “gulyas”,
from which this soup derived its name, cooked goulash consisting of beef or some
other meat along with an assortment of available vegetables. After simmering for
hours in large cauldrons, what was usually a tough piece of meat became tender
and juicy. By the 1500s the Hungarian gulyas recipe evolved to include seasoning
the stew with onions, paprika, caraway seeds and other spices.
The popularity of this savory dish
spread throughout many parts of Europe including Austria, Poland, the Czech
Republic, Slovakia, Italy and Germany. Each country has its own adaptation of
the original Hungarian recipe.
Northern Italy in the South Tyrol region
has its own version of goulash. In the Italian version of goulash, beef is cooked
with red wine and seasoned with rosemary, marjoram, paprika and bay leaf. In
fact, Italian cuisine significantly influenced the development of the original
Hungarian goulash recipe. In the 15th century King Matthias Corvinus
of Hungary married Princess Beatrice of Naples. She felt that the original goulash
was rather bland. To make it more palatable she introduced Italian ingredients
including onions and garlic. Years later, through Italian traders paprika from
Turkey was added.
Germany has also introduced many
different recipes for goulash. These include: Beef goulash (Rindergulasch);
Pork goulash (Schweinegulasch); Wild boar goulash (Wildschweingulasch)
and Sausage goulash (Wurstgulasch). Wurstgulsch was a popular and
inexpensive dish made in the old DDR, which was the Deutsche
Demokratische Republik or
East Germany. It also is quick and easy to make. Another type of goulash is
made with sauerkraut called Szegedin Goulash or Székely Gulyás. Arguably,
while the Hungarians may have invented goulash, the Germans perfected it.
While I originally started cooking a Hungarian
version of goulash using beef, I now primarily make my version of Schweinegulasch.
The general rule of thumb that most cooks follow is that if you use four pounds
of meat, you should use four pounds of vegetables. Key ingredients for most rescipe include:
·
Pork
(I use pork shoulder also called Boston butt)
·
Onions
(a couple pounds of sliced onions is not unusual; some chefs will use as much
onions as meat)
·
Carrots
(you can either slice or dice at least six carrots)
·
Celery
or celeriac aka celery root (celery root is more flavorful. For 5 pounds of
meat you will want to use an entire tuber.)
·
Bell
Peppers (you can use a mixture of green, red and yellow peppers)
·
Garlic
(I like garlic so I will add at least six large cloves)
·
Potatoes
(if you use potatoes at all, use the small
gold ones, washed with the skins on)
·
Broth
and/or red wine (a mixture of beef broth and red wine work well with the
caramelized onions)
·
Diced
Tomatoes (instead of fresh tomatoes, you can use a can of fire roasted
tomatoes)
·
Tomato
Paste (at least 2 tablespoons)
·
Spices
(Salt, Pepper, Bay Leaves and lots of Paprika Powder. You can even flavor your
soup with Italian seasoning). No, I didn’t forget caraway seeds, I just don’t
like it. Add it if it is your thing. Traditionally, Hungarian goulash was made
with a sweet Hungarian paprika, but you can use what you like or have on hand. For
five pounds of meat, I will use 5 tablespoons of sweet paprika.
·
Sour
Cream
·
Pork
fat, bacon grease or lard for browning
·
Whole
berry cranberry sauce
Instructions
As a rule of thumb, when making goulash,
the volume of vegetables used in this dish should equal the amount of meat by
weight. Instead of using a roux to thicken this dish, you can add grated potato
and/or use cubed celery root instead of celery. Celery root is not the root of
what we know in the United States as celery. Known as celeriac, it is related
to and tastes like celery but with a more pronounced or pungent, earthy taste. Once
you have peeled and diced celery root, immediately soak it in a bowl of water
or it will discolor like a potato. Discoloration probably doesn’t matter,
because like potatoes, as you cook the diced pieces, the flesh eventually disintegrates
and blends with the other ingredients and adds to the thickness of the soup.
In preparing the pork butt, the first
step is to cut away as much of the fat cap as possible. I don’t throw fat away.
Instead, I render it and use the grease to brown the pork and vegetables. For
browning, you can also use either lard or bacon grease. I use either rendered
pork fat or a product called Bacon Up.
Cut the flesh of the pork butt into equal
sized cubes of about 1.5” chunks. Before browning, season the meat with salt
and pepper or an all-purpose seasoning.
Brown the chunks of pork in a cast iron
skillet or Dutch oven. Don’t overcrowd
the pan or the meat may not have room to brown properly. You will probably need
to brown the meat in batches. Set the meat aside after you attain the desired
color.
Next sauté the diced onions on medium
low until they soften and begin to caramelize. This should take about 10 to 15
minutes. Next add the garlic and tomato paste. After a minute, stir in the
paprika. Adding the paprika at this point will allow it to bloom, becoming more
flavorful. Deglaze the pot or skillet with broth or red wine or a combination
of the two.
If you are using a large Dutch oven,
return the meat with its juices. Otherwise, you can use a large stock pot with
a heavy bottom to cook the goulash. Add vegetables and bay leaves to the pot. Make
sure that you use enough liquid to cover the meat and vegetables.
Cook the soup until the meat is soft
and juicy. As you near the end of your meal preparation, do a taste test. As
with many endeavors, I like to advise to “TEST, DON’T GUESS. This is the time
to make any adjustments. Many German chefs will sweeten their goulash, if
needed, by adding whole berry cranberry sauce known as Preiselbeeren. The rationale for adjusting the dish with
cranberry sauce is that it can balance out any heavy taste of the meat used.
This is often necessary if you are using beef, wild pig or venison rather than
pork. It’s all a matter of taste. That’s why you should taste first and then
gradually make adjustments. With plenty of onions, carrots and peppers, your
goulash may be sweet enough. If you decide to add cranberry sauce, add a
tablespoon at a time until you attain the desired taste.
If you like your goulash more like stew
than soup, you can thicken it with a roux or slurry. You can also add diced
potatoes to your dish, which will break down during the cooking process. If you
use diced celery root, it will also disintegrate during cooking, thickening the
consistency of the liquid. Finally, turn off the heat and slowly stir in sour
cream so it does not curdle.
Serve the dish over egg noodles,
potatoes or spaetzle. You can also skip the additional carbs and just eat the
goulash as is.
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