Meine Oma's Danube Schwäbisches Rindergulasch.
By Phillip Szabo
Beef Goulash is a central/east European comfort food staple. Recipes for this dish vary by region and family alike as recipes are handed down generation to generation. My Hungarian ancestors are credited with the birth of this paprika flavored dish. The original Hungarian style would be better described as a soup of beef, egg noodles, potatoes, onions, carrots and other vegetables on hand optionally added. The Slavic versions would be better described as stews laid over noodles, also extremely tasty and hearty. Today, I will be sharing a family recipe of Schwobisch origin in which the texture is between both. It's a simple rendition, full of flavor, using 7/8 beef shoulder to 1/8 pork shoulder and onions. (optional additions below) Laid over spaetzle this meal is perfect for an extended family, mid afternoon, Sunday dinner. For my American readers especially from my home State of New Jersey, I would liken it to a Sunday pot of red gravy.
(*Note red gravy is a very Jersey family meal assimilated into our distinct culture North and South. It was introduced to all Jerseyans by our American/ Italian friends and neighbors who often refer to it as sauce. There is always a debate over if its proper name is gravy or sauce. I refer to to any sauce with meat as gravy that me.)
I hope that many readers will try this for a family Sunday dinner. Starting it after Mass, denominational Service or simply around 10:30 am, It is an all day stew best done in a large pot on the stove that will fill your home with inviting smells. Our Schwobish Goulash is a minimal prep and minimal fuss meal. This allows for plenty of bonding time in the kitchen or watching football. Perhaps you hold your family over with a platter of smoked sausages, cheese, and some sliced bread. Not to much now, believe me everyone will want to save plenty of room for the goulash!
What you will need and options for 10 people:
- 5 lbs. of beef shoulder (boneless)
- 1/2 -3/4 lbs of pork butt (boneless)
- 11 (2 1/2 inch diameter max) small yellow onions or 6 large onions (4 inch diameter) I like to use large onions and occasional will make 2 of them medium sized red onions. Basically you want a 2:1 volume ratio of onions to meat (uncooked)
- 5 tbls. of Sweet Hungarian Paprika (Szeged)
- 4 cloves of garlic (smashed)
- 12 oz. of dry red wine (Bulls Blood) or 18 oz of beer (Pilsner) Enjoy the other half beer.
- 2 cups of beef stock (optional if you are without add more water and that other half of beer, sorry, you should have had beef stock)
- 1 medium carrot thinly sliced (optional)
- Salt and Pepper to taste.
- Oil to lightly coat bottom of pot, extra virgin olive is great but soy of vegetable are fine.
Directions:
Prep time 20 mins
Cook time 4 hours+
Take your beef chuck and cut it into 1 inch cubes. Leave the fat, there no need to trim as the fat will render into the gravy. Then cut your pork shoulder into 3/4 inch cubes. Pork slow cooked is stringier and you simply want it to break up into the gravy. Next, go ahead and smash your garlic and peel leaving them whole. Pour yourself a glass of wine or crack a beer you deserve it! Now the most tedious part of prep cutting your onions. Many will simply half them then large dice them 3 cuts by 3 cuts which is fine. What you need to know is you want most of your onions to be completely broken down so taking time to cut them very thin will ensure cooking time does not exceed 4 hours. Not necessary but I usually cut 2 yellow and my 2 red onions very thin in slivers and then dice them 4 by 4. I cut the other two as fore mentioned to maintain some texture.
Cooking:
Lightly coating the bottom of your large pot with oil heat on high and brown your cubed meat. Lower your heat to medium and remove the meat into a dish to ad again later. Use tongs as to leave dripping in your pot.
Then add a light amount oil if necessary and under the medium heat add your onions and garlic (carrots if you opt for them) with a few pinches of salt saute them for 2- 3 minutes until the start to significantly soften. You do not want to caramelize them just jump start the cooking process.
Next, pour in your beer or wine and one cup of stock stirring it in. Continue by re-adding your meat and applying the paprika. Stir the mixture well and then stir in the other cup of stock. Raise heat to high.
The last initial step is adding enough water to cover the mixture to the consistency of a normal soup. Stir the mix thoroughly. Bring to a boil, cover then reduce heat to a simmer for 1 hour.
After 1 hour remove cover and swiftly stir well. Taste the soup, add salt and pepper to taste and recover for another hour.
The third hour repeat a thorough stir and examine the onions. They should be starting to significantly break down. If so, cover again leaving a small gap from the lip of the pot and pot top. This is to slowly start the reduction of the soup into the stew. If you are not happy with the break down of your onions cover fully again.
The fourth hour you will remove the top and the goulash will remain uncovered. As it continues to simmer and reduce, stir the goulash every 15 minutes until you reach your desired consistency. This Is to your personal preference it may take a 1/2 for some others 1 1/2 hours but 1 hour is a good rule of thumb.
Once you near your desired thickness do not stir for about 5 minutes. Now, you may skim some fat off the top if you so choose. Some people do some people do not. I do not I just drink more wine when eating.
Serving:
Our Danube Schwobisch Goulash is done. To serve lay a bed of spaetzle (directions below) in a bowl then ladle a portion on top. Many goulash lovers will add a dollop of sour cream on top. It is very complimentary but not necessary. Gather around your dinning table with loved ones and enjoy this central/eastern European version of Sunday gravy. You will be a hero for the day at least and most likely begin a tradition that keeps your kids home on Sunday. Even more likely it will be a way to truly get to know their friends as your kids will be very proud to invite friends for Sunday dinner.
Making the Spaetzle:
Spaetzle is a German form of egg noodle. You certainly can use American style egg noodles or several forms of Italian pastas. If you choose pasta I would use rigatoni or bow tie. Both do well in soaking up the gravy. A good time to prepare the spaetzle is when you are doing your prep because the dish is best with the noodles cooled. They will be sticky which is partly why this is the way to serve them but for so Americans you may want to add some olive oil after straining and mix.
I suggest that they are made while you prep because this is an opportunity to have a younger member of the family join you in the kitchen. If you are comfortable with your older child (11-12) using the stove and boiling water spaetzle is quick and easy and includes them in making the meal for the whole family. This is always something we like to encourage here at Meeting Meat.
They bring a pot of water to boil add the noodles for about 4 minutes then strain. Pour into a bowl and stir some oil in if that is what your family prefers. Once the noodles are cool they can cover them and leave on the counter. That little step gives them responsibility to reenter the kitchen after about a half hour. You will thank me for this when they become teenagers.
Now, I do not make my own spaetzle. I know, I know, why not, right? However, if you would like to try doing this I am adding a link below to a tutorial from cooks I trust and have tried other dishes from before. Who knows, maybe next Sunday I will try making Spaetzle!
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