Hungarian pork goulash: step by step recipes with photos

Many dishes of the national cuisines of the world have become part of modern life, but they have retained the traditional nuances of cooking. The classic Hungarian pork goulash is a thick soup with vegetables that is great for lunch or dinner. Depending on taste preferences, you can change the composition of the ingredients, choosing the perfect combination.

How to cook Hungarian pork goulash

The traditional European dish originated several centuries ago as a shepherd’s soup. Among the original components, potatoes, beef and paprika are distinguished. Over time, culinary experts came to the conclusion that pork makes the final result more tender and balanced.

To get the perfect finished product, you need to take care of the freshness of the main ingredient. When buying pork for a Hungarian goulash recipe in the supermarket, it is inspected for pinkish meat without bruising. At the slightest sign of winding or turning blue, as well as an unpleasant odor, you should refrain from buying such a product. Goulash can be cooked even from frozen meat, but you should give preference to softer cuts – ham and loin.

A distinctive feature of the Hungarian recipe is coarsely chopped meat. Often the pieces are similar in size to a barbecue. The average size of each of them is from 3 to 4 cm. It is believed that during cooking such meat gives a better taste to the broth, and also becomes very juicy and tender inside. To obtain the correct consistency of pork, it needs a long heat treatment – up to 1,5-2 hours.

The next essential component of any goulash is potatoes. In the classic Hungarian recipe, it is cut into large pieces. An average potato of 150-200 g is crushed into 6-8 parts. The ingredient is added towards the end of cooking so that the tubers do not boil too much.

Classic Hungarian goulash – a very thick soup with meat and potatoes

Modern Hungarian goulash recipes include not only potatoes. Many housewives add onions, tomatoes, carrots and bell peppers to it. There are even zoned recipes with sauerkraut, beans and pumpkin.

Fresh bacon is best for pre-roasting vegetables. It is heated to cracklings, and onions, carrots and bell peppers are sautéed in the resulting mass. For a classic recipe for Hungarian pork goulash, you can use fresh brisket and even salted bacon. Many housewives use pre-rendered fat.

Among the spices for a Hungarian dish, paprika is the main favorite. It makes the soup more spicy and bright. Initially, it is she who provides the rich color of the finished product. Many modern housewives replace it with red pepper and tomato paste. The taste is also enhanced with garlic, coriander and bay leaf.

Hungarian goulash should be cooked calmly and leisurely. In order for pork and vegetables to languish properly, the dishes must have a thick bottom and walls. A cast iron skillet or a classic cauldron is best suited. If the finished dish turned out to be too thick, it can be diluted with water to the desired consistency.

Classic recipe for Hungarian pork goulash

The traditional method of cooking the dish involves a large amount of hot seasoning. It is also worth paying attention to the ratio of meat to potatoes – 1: 1. For 1 kg of pork and this amount of potatoes, you need:

• 200 g of smoked bacon;
• 1 bulb;
• 3 cup of water;
• 5 st. l. paprika;
• 1 Bulgarian pepper;
• 1 egg;
• salt to taste.

It is paprika that gives Hungarian goulash that piquant taste.

The first step is to melt the bacon to get fat. It is cut into cubes or straws and stewed over high heat until greaves form, after which it is removed with a slotted spoon. Then pork, cut into large pieces, is fried in fat. First, juice will stand out from it, and only then it will begin to fry.

As soon as the pork is ready, chopped onion and bell pepper are added to it. All ingredients are poured with water, and then seasoned with paprika. The Hungarian dish is cooked for about an hour over low heat, then coarsely chopped potatoes and eggs are added to it. The readiness of the goulash is checked by the state of the potatoes – if it is soft, you can salt and remove the pan from the heat. Experienced chefs advise to insist the dish for about half an hour and only then serve it to the table.

Hungarian goulash soup with pork

In modern realities, housewives often use additional ingredients that improve the taste of the finished product. Considering that such a national feature of Europeans is not very suitable for most inhabitants, paprika in the recipe is most often replaced with garlic.

To prepare a delicious Hungarian pork goulash with potatoes, you will need:

• 1 kg of tubers;
• 1 kg loin;
• 100 g bacon;
• 1 bulb;
• 1 carrots;
• 1 Bulgarian pepper;
• 2 st. l. paprika;
• 4 garlic cloves;
• 2 Medium Tomato;
• 2 laurel leaves;
• salt to taste;
• 2 cup of water;
• 1 glass of tomato juice.

To get the right color in Hungarian goulash, you can add tomatoes

As in the original recipe, the pork fat is first fried to the state of cracklings. In the resulting fat, large pieces of pork are quickly glazed. Then chopped vegetables are added to it – onions, carrots, bell peppers, garlic and tomatoes. The mixture is stewed for 5-10 minutes with constant stirring, then poured with water and tomato juice, and seasoned with paprika and bay leaf.

All ingredients are boiled for 45 minutes, then potatoes cut into large cubes are added to them. As soon as it becomes soft, the soup is salted to taste and water is added as desired. Goulash is insisted for half an hour, after which it is served to the table along with white bread.

Hungarian pork goulash with gravy

Most people in the post-Soviet space are used to the fact that this dish has too thick broth. Many housewives have adapted Hungarian goulash to their own tastes, preferring timely addition of gravy over long cooking.

To prepare such an original dish you will need:

• 1 kg of pork;
• 1 kg of potatoes;
• 100 g of melted fat;
• 100 g flour;
• 2 Art. water;
• 1 large carrots;
• 2 tomato;
• 1 bulb;
• 1 st. l. paprika;
• 5 cloves of garlic;
• 1 bay leaf;
• salt and seasonings to taste.

The main dish and gravy are prepared in different containers and only in the middle of the recipe are combined in a large saucepan with a thick bottom. Pork is fried in hot fat in a frying pan. As soon as a crust appears, chopped vegetables are added to them – carrots, onions, tomatoes and garlic. Pork for Hungarian goulash is stewed for about half an hour.

Hungarian goulash gravy is prepared in a separate pan

During this time, flour is fried in a separate dry frying pan, stirring it occasionally. As soon as it turns golden, pour in water in a thin stream, mix vigorously to avoid the formation of lumps. Ready gravy is poured into meat and vegetables. Add diced potatoes to it. After that, the dish is stewed until all the ingredients are fully cooked, then seasoned with paprika and salted to taste.

Hungarian goulash with pork and chips

One of the most popular recipes for a traditional dish involves the use of a large number of meat ingredients, along with dumplings. This soup in Hungarian is somewhat reminiscent of a traditional hodgepodge.

To prepare it you will need:

• 400 g of pork;
• 200 g smoked ribs;
• 200 g hunting sausages;
• 200 g smoked brisket;
• 200 g flour;
• 1 egg;
• 3 Art. water;
• 4 st. l. paprika;
• 1 Bulgarian pepper;
• 1 bulb;
• 1 bay leaf;
• salt to taste.

Hungarian-style dumplings are made by mixing flour with 100 ml of water and one chicken egg. The mixture is salted to taste, then stirred. Small cubes are formed from the dough and left to dry slightly. During this time, brisket is fried in a large saucepan until a crust appears. To it is added in turn, frying each type of meat for 5 minutes, diced tenderloin, ribs and hunting sausages.

A large number of meat delicacies makes Hungarian goulash hearty and tasty

Chopped vegetables, potatoes and dumplings are added to meat delicacies. All ingredients are poured with water, seasoned with salt, paprika and bay leaf. As soon as the potatoes become soft, the stewpan is removed from the fire, left for half an hour to infuse the soup.

Conclusion

Classic Hungarian pork goulash is an incredibly satisfying dish. The even ratio of meat, potatoes and broth turns into an excellent flavor composition that most gourmets will appreciate. Modern adaptations of the classic delicacy will make even those who are not a fan of too spicy food fall in love with it.