Mautner Zsófi - Hungarian foodblogger and former TV cooking show host based in Budapest.
Author of 9 cookbooks. www.chiliesvanilia.hu
What you never ever would add to a pörkölt are any of the following ones:
- flour, butter, canned tomatoes (all three I see in many „authentic” recipes).
There are a few optional ingredients that could be added, this really depends on your taste, on habits and on what you have on hand. (e.g. pork fat instead of oil, smoked bacon, green pepper, fresh tomato, red wine, caraway seeds).
Recipe (4 servings):
1 kg beef for stews, cubed
3-4 big onions, finely chopped
4-5 tbsp groundnut oil
3-4 tbsp best quality Hungarian sweet paprika
salt, pepper
1 green pepper, sliced (the kind which is on the picture, not bell peppers)
1 fresh tomato (this one I add only if I’m in Hungary or if I can get some really tasty good quality tomato, otherwise it just makes the sauce too watery and sour and doesn’t add anything to the flavour)
Heat oil in a saucepan.
Add the finely chopped onions and cook until translucent.
Now comes an important secret step: remove the saucepan from the heat and now add the paprika – this is very important as if you would do this step still on the heat, the paprika could burn from the sudden heat and get bitter.
Put it back, add beef cubes and stir so that the spicy onion mix covers th meat evenly.
Cover with about 100-150ml water so that the liquid doesn’t completely cover the meat.
Add the sliced green pepper, the whole tomato (later will be removed at the end), salt, pepper.
Simmer covered on very low heat for about 1-1,5 hours.
After 1 hour, check, add a litle more water if necessary, so the stew doesn’t burn.
Depending on the thickness of the sauce, cook for 10-15 minutes uncovered so that all the liquid reduces and all what you get is a spicy, thick sauce which covers the meat.
It tastes even better reheated, I normally prepare it a day ahead."
Note: Smoked paprika comes in both sweet and hot.
The Spanish variety is called 'Pimenton de la Vera' (dulce = sweet, picante = hot).
Hungarian smoked paprika comes in both sweet and hot.
I find sweet, smoked paprika more useful than the hot smoked paprika, you can always get heat from chili's.
Regular paprika whether sweet or hot has a very subtle flavor.
- CHILI & VANILIA: My authentic Hungarian Goulash recipe:
'via Blog this'
Author of 9 cookbooks. www.chiliesvanilia.hu
"There a two SECRETS of a good goulash:
- the ingredients you add to it and the ones you don’t.
In my opinion the secret ingredient of a perfect Hungarian stew (besides a good quality Hungarian paprika of course) is onion. A lot. More. A lot more!!
For 1 kg meat (two pounds) I would use about 3-4 big onions.
That seem to be a lot but this will create your thick sauce.
As you’re simmering the stew on very low heat for about 1,5 hours, the onions melt into a sweet, spicy sauce, so you won’t have any pieces of it at the end.
- the ingredients you add to it and the ones you don’t.
In my opinion the secret ingredient of a perfect Hungarian stew (besides a good quality Hungarian paprika of course) is onion. A lot. More. A lot more!!
For 1 kg meat (two pounds) I would use about 3-4 big onions.
That seem to be a lot but this will create your thick sauce.
As you’re simmering the stew on very low heat for about 1,5 hours, the onions melt into a sweet, spicy sauce, so you won’t have any pieces of it at the end.
What you never ever would add to a pörkölt are any of the following ones:
- flour, butter, canned tomatoes (all three I see in many „authentic” recipes).
There are a few optional ingredients that could be added, this really depends on your taste, on habits and on what you have on hand. (e.g. pork fat instead of oil, smoked bacon, green pepper, fresh tomato, red wine, caraway seeds).
Recipe (4 servings):
1 kg beef for stews, cubed
3-4 big onions, finely chopped
4-5 tbsp groundnut oil
3-4 tbsp best quality Hungarian sweet paprika
salt, pepper
1 green pepper, sliced (the kind which is on the picture, not bell peppers)
1 fresh tomato (this one I add only if I’m in Hungary or if I can get some really tasty good quality tomato, otherwise it just makes the sauce too watery and sour and doesn’t add anything to the flavour)
Heat oil in a saucepan.
Add the finely chopped onions and cook until translucent.
Now comes an important secret step: remove the saucepan from the heat and now add the paprika – this is very important as if you would do this step still on the heat, the paprika could burn from the sudden heat and get bitter.
Put it back, add beef cubes and stir so that the spicy onion mix covers th meat evenly.
Cover with about 100-150ml water so that the liquid doesn’t completely cover the meat.
Add the sliced green pepper, the whole tomato (later will be removed at the end), salt, pepper.
Simmer covered on very low heat for about 1-1,5 hours.
After 1 hour, check, add a litle more water if necessary, so the stew doesn’t burn.
Depending on the thickness of the sauce, cook for 10-15 minutes uncovered so that all the liquid reduces and all what you get is a spicy, thick sauce which covers the meat.
It tastes even better reheated, I normally prepare it a day ahead."
Note: Smoked paprika comes in both sweet and hot.
The Spanish variety is called 'Pimenton de la Vera' (dulce = sweet, picante = hot).
Hungarian smoked paprika comes in both sweet and hot.
I find sweet, smoked paprika more useful than the hot smoked paprika, you can always get heat from chili's.
Regular paprika whether sweet or hot has a very subtle flavor.
- CHILI & VANILIA: My authentic Hungarian Goulash recipe:
'via Blog this'
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