Austrian Main Courses: Gulasch (goulash)

Ingredients (2 people)

300 g meat (beef or - less common - pork)
100 g butter
3 small onions
2 tablespoons of sweet, red paprika powder
Salt, pepper
1 tablespoon of caraway
a good shot of vinegar

What Austrian Goulash is

Isn't goulash a Hungarian meal? That's what I have always been asked when the cafeteria of my college served "Austrian Goulash". Now, let me explain this. It is in fact the case that "goulash" is both a Hungarian word and meal. The Hungarian goulash, however, is somewhat more soupy and slightly differently prepared than the meal that Austrian's call "Gulasch". The goulash that I describe below was derived from the Hungarian dish much like the Wiener Schnitzel was derived from an Italian meal.

Nevertheless, it is genuinely Austrian - at least Imperial Austrian. Hungarians would probably not identify the Austrian goulash as what they consider to be goulash and the other way round. Goulash is prepared in many variations in all of Austria, the following recipe is a version commonly prepared in my family. The meal served in my college's cafeteria, by the way, was neither Austrian, nor Hungarian - and certainly not goulash after all.

How to prepare Austrian Goulash

Chop the onions and roast them in butter. Add the chopped meat and roast everything properly. Add salt, pepper and paprika, roast everything thoroughly. Add about 500 mL of water and a good shot of vinegar (I tried balsamic vinegar once when I had run out of normal one and that worked quite well) and the caraway. Boil at low heat for about 1.5 to 2 hours until the meat is tender. Stir occasionally and add water if necessary. Thicken the goulash with corn starch if necessary. It is best served with a Semmelknödel bread dumpling and some salad with sour cream dressing.

More Austrian Recipes

Cooking Measures Conversion Tool

Starters: Knoblauchcreme Soup - Wiener Suppentopf - Kürbiscreme Soup - Tomato Soup

Main Courses: Beuschl - Wiener Schnitzel - Kaspressknödel - Hasenpfeffer Venison - Goulash - Tiroler Knödel - Erdäpfellaibchen - Schwammerlgoulash

Desserts & Sweet Meals: Kaiserschmarrn - Topfenpalatschinken pancakes - Topfengrießknödel - Potato dough for Mohn- and Nussnudeln - Pofesen - Apple Strudel - Topfenschmarrn - Topfenstrudel - Wuchteln - Germknödel - Reisauflauf

Bread & Snacks: Bread base - Liptauer cheese - Erdäpfelkas - Obatzter

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