Hungarian Cuisine is Known Through Its Paprika

Goulash is a well known dish, replicated in many parts of the world, often with a similar name but different ingredients. In my experience, each variation is authentic to the peoples who now treasure this dish. But what is important is that it tells us about Hungarian Cuisine.

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Hungarian Cuisine

Traditional Hungarian dishes are primarily based on meats, with seasonal vegetables and fruits, bread and dairy products. The main carb served at nearly every meal is bread, in all its savory or sweet glory. Also, with each meal there is to be a side dish along with the main one, that is often potato-based, but could be rice or vegetables.

Spices

Spices commonly used include paprika, garlic, marjoram, and caraway, celery, or dill seeds.

Of the spices, paprika is the most important to my mind. MarthaStewart writes Paprika is the Hungarian word for pepper, and Hungarian-style paprika is not smoked, but rather fairly sweet. It was the Turks who introduced the chilies to Hungary, and it’s a very popular spice in Hungarian cuisine, giving distinctive flavor to soups and stews such as chicken paprikash and beef goulash.

But let us remember that peppers were introduced in the 1400s, so paprika was not around in the very early days of this dish. Tomatoes were also an introduced food, as both came from South America.

Other Dishes

Hungary is known for several, other internationally appreciated dishes. There is of course:

• Gulyás or goulash a meat stew with paprika
• Paprikás A chicken soup with some vegetables and paprika
• Töltött káposzta, made with filled cabbage leaves containing ground pork, rice, paprika, pepper, and tejföl (sour cream) 
• Főzelék is a soupy vegetable stew that may include potato, peas, beans, lentils and carrots.
• Halászlé is a fisherman’s soup is prepared with mixed river fish (carp, catfish, perch or pike), and hot paprika
• Lángos a deep-fried flat bread, and the famous goulash (1)

Remember, as with most cuisines, there are regional and even familial variations. Is the goulash thick with just meat, or does it contain some veggies and is a bit more soupy. All can be right and traditional, depending upon the region you are in.

Gulyás

Originating in Hungary, goulash has been traced back to the 9th century Magyar as a sheep-herder’s stew. (Note: the Magyar are a people who originated in the Urals, and migrated westward to settle in what is now Hungary, ~9th century.) The herders had to cook their own meals, and often would use their own herd for meat (culling the sickly or aged). Thus, the original goulash was most likely made with mutton. But, scholars also note that Hungary has original cattle and sheep breeds from the age of the Conquest of the Carpathian Basin more than 1100 years ago (2). So using beef for goulash is also well established.

The word for “herds-man” or ”cow-boy” in Hungarian is gulyás, so the dish name comes from the name of those who first started cooking this soup (3). From that beginning, goulash become a rather common meal in Central, and other parts of Europe. As a result, some have stated that the whole Carpathian region, (~8 countries) is part of the goulash story.

The spelling of this goulash varies by country, although they are all similar.

• English: goulash
• Hungary: gulyásleves 
• German/Austria: gulasch 
• Slovakia: guláš 
• Romania: gulaş

Even with similar, yet differing names, we all have a basic knowledge of what to expect. A red-ish, paprika-infused meat broth, with chili flavor, beef, onions and maybe other veggies; great with a dollop of sour cream and some read for sopping up.

While goulash is considered a paprika-infused, vegetable and beef soup in Hungary, around the world it is often considered more like a stew. Variations are many, but let’s dive into the Hungarian variations that exist.

• There are all sorts of variations within countries, regions, and even Hungarian families.
• There are two versions of goulash, one thickened with flour and one more soupy without any flour.
• The meat can be mutton, beef, pork or chicken.
• Some add carrots, potatoes, parsnips, parsnips or celery leaves, etc. 
• Some add csipetke homemade pinched egg-flour pasta, or German spätzle a bater pasta, and others use store-bought flat + wide egg noodles. 
• Others make it mild or very spicy, and some add the wild growing Hungarian caraway seeds to the dish (4).
• Some add white wine, others red, and a few do not use wine but only water or broth.
• Croatia makes a goulash with porcini mushrooms.
• Ethiopia makes a fish goulash (5).
• Romania serves goulash over polenta (6).

Paprikás

Other famous Hungarian meat dishes include paprikás, a traditionally chicken stew, with basic traditional ingredients of a meat broth (chicken), peppers, onions, garlic, sea salt, olive oil, and paprika. Often I have had this topped with sour cream and a side of bread.

Some cook use flour to thicken the sauce, and some add tomato paste. Meanwhile others argue that is not authentic.

Important Goulash Ingredients

Hungarian Holy Trinity

I have written about Aromatic Trinities + Bundles and the key roles they play in various cuisines. For Hungary, the trinity is clearly: lard (animal fat), onion, and paprika. This is the critical foundation in making an authentic goulash and similar dishes.

Chilies

How chilies worked their way across Europe to Hungary is a complicated story that consensus is still being sought on (7, 8); but all fingers point to its introduction via Turkish invadors sometime between 1526 or 1538, and 1548.

• SpecialtyProduce: Hungarian chile peppers were introduced to Hungary sometime during the early 16th century via invading Turks. The peppers were initially known as Turkisch rot pfeffer or the Turkish red pepper.
• In Hungary, fresh Hungarian chile peppers may be sold as paprika at local markets and grocers. Outside of Hungary, the term paprika refers exclusively to the powdered spice, and fresh Hungarian chile peppers are offered through farmers markets and online seed catalogs for home garden use.

However it was introduced, from the Americas to Europe, and through Turkey to Hungary, they found they could grow the plant and use it as a condiment to local foods. Fresh or dried, processed into pickles, paste or powder, Chilies have become an important part of Hungarian foods.

Paprika

USA Paprika: Typical USA Paprika is not the real thing, we have machines that process ripe, red bell pepper into a mild red powder and label that Paprika (1, 1). Often, peppers from all over California, Hungary, South America, and others may be used for this generic paprika spice. I try to not use these spices for authentic meals calling for that spice, as I want to capture the real taste and aroma of the food. USA Paprika is primarily a coloring agent, mainly as a topping, and often has nothing to bring to a dish in terms of flavor.

Authentic, naturally vibrant red paprika are dried chilies grown and processed specifically in Hungary or Spain per European statutes. They are a mixture of the chili fruits to moderate taste, color and heat. So may include hot chili peppers, cayenne peppers, poblano peppers, aleppo peppers, sweet peppers, and others.

• Hungarian blooming paprika: Add generious amounts of Hungarian paprika to hot fat (in generous amounts) and heated very briefly. This helps prevent a certain bitterness that can develop if the spice burns. Then add the rest of the ingredients.

Spanish Paprika: Paprika was in Spain by the 16th Century, and now there are four primary types: spicy, sweet, bittersweet, or smokey. Then there are three heats:

• Pimentón Dulce or Sweet Paprika is made from mild rip peppers.
• Pimentón Agridulce or Medium Hot Paprika is made from long dark red peppers,
• while Pimentón Picante or Hot Paprika is made from several different types of those long red peppers.
• Also, Pimenton de La Vera is the smoked variety.

While Spain processes its own paprika, they make it from a mild Hungarian variety of the most common red pepper species (Capsicum annum).

Of note, is that Spain’s chorizo uses paprika for its color and main spice (9) .

Hungarian Paprika: Similar to Spanish Paprika, there are several types of Hungarian paprika with a variety of heat and flavor, including: delicate, rose, semi-sweet, strong, and special quality (10,11). Here are 8 names to be aware of from BudapestByLocals:

• Special quality (Különleges) – this is the mildest of all and has the most vibrant red colour
• Delicate (csípősmentes csemege)-mild with rich flavour,
• Exquisite delicate (csemege) –slightly more pungent than the Delicate,
• Pungent Exquisite delicate (csípős csemege), even more pungent
• Noble sweet (édesnemes) – the most common type, slightly pungent with bright red colour,
• Half-sweet (félédes) – a medium-pungent
• Rose (rózsa) – light red colour, mildly pungent
• Hot (erős) – the hottest of all paprikas, light brown-orange colour

Interestingly, a Hungarian chemist Albert Szent-György won the 1937 Nobel Prize for research on the vitamin content of paprika. He demonstrated that paprika has a higher VitC content than citrus fruit.

Hungarian Goulash

Quoting from the TasteofHungary,

• If there’s a single Hungarian cooking technique that summarizes Hungarian cooking, it is that adding paprika (and not just a pinch, rather several heaping tablespoons) to diced onions which have been slowly sautéing in hot fat until they are clear (but never browned), will produce the most definitive Hungarian flavor, adding depth and complexity.

Goulash is supposed to be a main dish, cooked in a way that it fits between stew and soup, So the liquid should be smooth, and thick, but requiring a spoon to eat. The veggies soft little bursts of flavor.

PattyCooks Hungarian Goulash Soup Recipe

This is a Hungarian recipe that I have from a Hungarian neighbor that lived close to me in Germany. She did not have daughters, and wanted to pass down her families recipe which I gladly learned. She was a very old, sun-kissed wrinkly, and short (compared to me), delightful, and loving woman. She told me that authentic Hungarian goulash did not use flour, wine, or dairy (except as a topping). Even tomatoes she considered a modern addition, and not adhering to the real goulash. She also preferred cooking with meat on the bone, saying that the bones added a distinct flavor to the goulash and thought every women should know how to make the little noodles she made for this dish.

A cooking note regarding paprika, since this pepper has a higher sugar content, be careful when cooking with it; keep heat lower, and stir constantly when blooming the spice for it can burn.

Ingredients

• 2.5# boneless chuck roast 
• 1t salt and pepper
• 2T avocado oil (high heat oil for searing)
• 1T unsalted European butter
• 2 diced large yellow onions
• 6 minced garlic
• 4T Hungarian paprika (not hot nor smokey, get Hungarian or sweet paprika)
• 2t crushed caraway seeds
• 1t dried thyme
• 3T tomato paste
• ~3C homemade beef broth
• 2 good sized bay leaves
• Vegetables
  • 1-1/2C chopped carrots
  • 10oz quartered mushrooms
  • 3 cubed Yucon Gold potatoes
• Cornstarch OPTIONAL if thickening is needed
• Toppings/Sides
  • Sour cream
  • Egg noodles
  • Chopped celery leaves
  • Bread

Directions

• Trim the excess fat from the roast, but save for rendering later. (If you want, you can use this fat as part of the oil for searing the meat.) Cut the meat into ~1-1/2” cubes, season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
• Heat the oil and butter in a cast iron skillet, and sear the meat. Make at least two batches for you do not want to crowd the meat. What you are seeking is not to cook the beef, but to give it a real good sear for all the flavor that caramelization can provide. Then remove the meat and set aside and do the next batch.
• Sauté the diced onions in the remaining fat.The goal here is caramelization as well.
• Then add the minced garlic, Hungarian paprika, smashed caraway seeds, and dried thyme to bloom. 
• Then add the tomato paste and mix well so it blooms and deepens in color and flavor.
• Put the mix into a heavy bottom stew pot then add the home made beef broth and bay leaves. Put on high to start to boil.
• Then using a bit of wine, scrape all the good stuff from the still hot skillet into the soup pot so nothing is wasted.
• Once the stew mixture is boiling, turn the heat down so it is set to a slow simmer.
• Then finally put the meat into the pot.
• Cover and let it all cook together for ~45 minutes so there is time to cook the meat and simmer all the flavors together.
• After that time lift the lid and taste the broth, season if required with paprika, salt or pepper.
• Now add the vegetables
  • Quartered mushrooms
  • Roast-cut carrots
  • Cubed potatoes (leave the peels if you want)
• Put the lid back on and continue to simmer for ~30 minutes, test for doneness of the veggies with a fork.
  • If it needs to be thicker, add up to 2T cornstarch. 
  • If it needs to be thinner add more broth.
• Plating
  • Noodles and the stew
  • Dollop of sour cream in each dish
  • Sprinkling of celery leaves

PattyCooks German Goulash Stew Recipe

Now in my family, we always added small, baby potatoes or Russian fingerling potatoes, and carrots in the dish. We washed them, sliced depending upon the size, and added them to the pot after the wine, to cook slowly in the sauce.

Also, good rendered animal fat is not as readily available in the USA as in other countries, so I use olive oil; this does change the flavor profile, but still tastes good. In Germany, goulash can be served with beef, pork, venison, or wild boar meats.

This is a slow cooker recipie.

• Cut 3# beef chuck into 1” cubes and add to a bowl with 1t kosher salt, 1/4t ground pepper, and 2T AP flour. Mix all together, then let stand.
• Preheat cast iron skillet with 1/4C cup fat (or vegetable oil) and, once shimmering, add the beef in batches so they all brown well. Be sure that while cooking the meat, the fond does not burn. Then remove the beef and set aside.
• Meanwhile add 2C large diced yellow onions to the fat in the still hot skillet
• Add 4 minced garlic, and cook until onions are translucent and garlic is aromatic.
• Add 3-4T sweet paprika over the veggies, mixing well.
• Then add 1.5C red wine to deglaze the skillet and scrape the skillet contents into a large soup pan.
• Remove skillet from the stove top and clean, for now on we are using the soup pot.
• Whisk in 3C homemade beef broth, add beef bouillon to up the flavor, and 1/4C tomato paste and combine
• Add 1t mashed (in a pestle and mortar) caraway seeds,
• 2t ground marjoram,
• 1/2t chopped (easier to cut with scissors) dried rosemary,
• 2 bay leaves, and
• 1T red wine vinegar.
• Lid and slow cook for 2-3 hours. Then taste and season as required.
• Now add 2 roughly cut medium carrots, and halved skinned baby potatoes (skin on or off as you prefer),
• 1 medium red bell pepper, and 1 orange bell pepper cut into 1” pieces.
• Serve with parsley or celery leaves on top of a dollop of crème fraîche.

Other families would add spätzle by cooking it separately and adding the cooked pasta to the goulash about 10 minutes before serving so they had time to get into the sauce. Others would add a bread dumpling.

PattyCooks Vegetarian Goulash-Like Soup

Here is my recipe for a vegetarian/vegan version. This recipe moves quickly, so Mise en Place is necessary.

• To a heavy bottom soup pan, add 1T avocado oil and heat it up, then add (in order, cooking ~2 minutes between each addition): 2C larger-diced shiitake, 2C diced white onion,1 diced green bell pepper, and 3 minced garlic.
• Mix well until onions are translucent and garlic is aromatic.
• Then add 4T Hungarian paprika and cook ~4min constantly stirring to prevent any burning.
• Now add 3C homemade veggie-mushroom broth,
• 1t kosher salt, 1/2t ground pepper and cook on a low simmer, lidded for ~5min.
• Taste and add 1/4C dry red wine, as well as
• 8 small quartered red or gold potatoes, 2 chopped carrots, 2 small chopped parsnips, and one chopped tomato.
• OPTIONAL: Add cubed tempeh for protein
• Cook lidded on a low simmer, stirring occasionally, for ~30-45 minutes until all the veggies are cooked.
• Once ready to serve taste and modify if needed.
  • If too thin, add corn starch.
  • If too thick, add broth or water.
  • If you want it hotter, add a bit of cayenne, starting with 1/8t.
  • If too salty add more potatoes to soak up the salt.
  • If not red enough, add more paprika to deepen the color

The American Version

I just read several recipies for American versions of this dish (13) and OMG I am embarassed to call these dishes a goulash. But I understand, the American version is a Hamburger Helper type of casserole dish that can be made real quick, popped into the oven, and then served to a family all within a reasonable amount of time. However, this dish should actually be renamed as a Beef Paprika casserole for it is not a goulash.

—Patty

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