Culinary Guides

A slow cooker take on the Hungarian classic: cubes of beef braised with onion, sweet paprika, and tomatoes until fork tender, then finished with sour cream and served over egg noodles. It feeds a crowd and only gets better as leftovers.

Ingredients

• 3 pounds stew meat (or chuck steak or roast, cubed)
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon Hungarian paprika
• Salt to taste
• 28 ounces diced tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon liquid gravy browner
• 1 tablespoon beef bouillon powder
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 4 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 cups sour cream
• Caraway seeds to taste (optional)

Directions

1. In a slow cooker, toss the stew meat, onion, garlic, flour, paprika, and a pinch of salt until the meat is coated.
2. In a bowl, stir together the diced tomatoes, gravy browner, beef bouillon, lemon juice, and sugar, then pour over the meat and stir.
3. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or high for 4 to 5 hours, until the beef is tender.
4. Spoon a little of the hot cooking liquid into the sour cream and stir, then pour the sour cream back into the pot and stir through. Tempering it this way keeps it from curdling.
5. Taste and adjust the salt, adding caraway seeds if you like.
6. Cook the egg noodles per the package and drain. Serve the goulash hot over the noodles, garnished with parsley or a little more sour cream.

Leftovers keep in the fridge for up to 3 days and freeze well. Add bell peppers or carrots to the pot for a heartier stew.

Grower's tip: real Hungarian paprika starts as peppers you can grow yourself. Let sweet paprika types ripen to a deep red on the plant, then dry them and grind your own for a flavor no jar can match.

Much of what makes this pot sing is homegrown. Grow some paprika peppers to dry and a patch of caraway for the finish, alongside your onions and tomatoes.