Hungarian Goulash Soup (Gulyás leves)

I took this picture when we made the soup in the cooking class

Recipe as written from Culinary Hungary (with permission):
Ingredients for 4 people:

For the goulash soup:

400 grams of beef shank (14.1 ounces) – cut into 1-inch cubes

3 medium or 2 large onions – diced 

2 tablespoons lard or 6 tablespoons of vegetable oil (sunflower)

2 tablespoons of sweet Hungarian paprika powder

2 bay leaves

2 medium carrots – peeled and cut into 1⁄4 inch slices

1 medium parsley root– peeled and cut into 1⁄4 inch slices

1 medium fresh tomato – chopped

1 sweet yellow pepper (or wax or banana pepper) – cut into small pieces

2-3 medium potatoes – peeled and cut into medium size cubes

1 clove of garlic – minced

1 teaspoon of ground caraway seeds

10 black peppercorns

Salt to taste

 

Cutting meat into cubes and dicing the yellow pepper in cooking class

Directions:

In a large soup pot, sauté the onions in vegetable oil or pork lard over low heat, stirring frequently, until translucent. Do not let them burn. Salt lightly to help tenderize them. The onions should be cut into very, very small pieces. This is essential in order to achieve the “stew consistency”. Add a small amount of water, if necessary, to keep them from sticking to the pan.

Remove the pot from the heat, add the sweet Hungarian paprika, stir. Add the tomatoes, the sweet yellow pepper and the meat, and stir again. Do not burn the paprika, or it will become bitter.

Add the bay leaves, the peppercorns, and about 7-8 cups (2 liters) of water. Salt to taste. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until meat is almost tender, adding water as necessary. It takes about 1.5-2 hours. If you use a pressure cooker add only 6 cups of water and cook for about 35-40 minutes or until tender.

Add the carrots, the parsley roots, the ground caraway seed, and the garlic. Salt to taste. Cover, bring back to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer.

Add the potatoes and the Csipetke (pinched noodles) when the vegetables are half tender and cook until the vegetables (including the potatoes) are tender. It takes about 5-8 minutes.

Patti’s Notes:

Andrew (our chef at Culinary Hungary) said if you can’t find beef shank you could substitute chuck roast.  I used chuck roast.  I used oil, not lard.  For the parsley root he said not to substitute parsley, it will be too bitter.   You could sub parsley stock or just leave it out.  My store was out of parsley root so I left it out but I will try to find it next time.  I was actually able to find Hungarian Sweet Yellow Pepper in the grocery department at Walmart.  My store only had whole caraway seeds so I ground them myself.  They smelled SO good.  He put the black peppercorns in a tea infuser before adding them to the pot.  Then removed them prior to serving.  So I did that too.  And don't forget to remove the bay leaves.  We made the pinch noodles in class but I did not make the pinch noodles when I made it at home.

Csipetke (pinched noodles) can be cooked directly in the soup broth, or in plain water. It is a great accompaniment for goulash soup. Their name comes from the way they are formed.

For the Csipetke (pinched) noodles:

1 egg – beaten *(the amount of dough you can make with one egg is enough for a recipe for 12 people. I always use only about 1/3rd of one beaten egg.)

Pinch of salt

White flour – as much as necessary to create a firm, smooth dough

In a medium bowl mix together the egg, the salt and the flour, and knead with your fingertips until a firm, smooth dough forms.

Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 15 minutes. You can use it immediately if you are in a hurry.
Pinch off small pieces of dough about the size of a lemon seed and roll them. 

Making pinch noodles in cooking class

Drop them into the soup and cook for about 5-8 minutes.

Enjoy!

~Source - Recipes are from a cooking class Connie and I took in Budapest Hungary at Culinary Hungary