Goulash is traditionally a soup. However, these days, there are two variations, mainly the stew that is thicker and the soup variation which is the true original.
The goulash consists of the following key ingredients: Beef cubes, diced onions, vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, spices bay leaf, thyme and ground caraway seeds, seasonings. And the most important spice: the chilli powder (paprika powder).
Goulash is sometimes confused with the pörkölt. Pörkölt is a stew which means the texture is thicker and Hungarian paprika (the vegetable form which is sweet and thin-skinned) is added along with tomatoes to create the gravy.
Very frequently, people who fell in love with this dish asked 'what is the secret?'
It lies in the treatment of the paprika powder! How you handle the paprika is absolutely the key to a good pot of goulash.
First, you must fry diced onions (vöröshagyma) in szalonna which is what we called the 'lard'. Once the onion turns light golden colour, lift up the pan off the fire and quickly add paprika powder. Do not underestimate these steps because paprika powder turns bitter if you directly heat it over the fire instead of the 'hot fat'. See the difference?
A good quality base of this mixture is prepared to coat the beef chunks from fresh and well-exercised slab of beef that has muscles rich in collagen in them. Making this dish fantastic when it is converted to gelatin during the cooking process. Coat the beef chunks well and return the pan to the fire.
The second secret is adding of tomatoes to this mixture. The Hungarian tomatoes are sweet and these natural juices from the vegetable makes it really delicious.
Mostly, I cook it with veal (calves' meat). Very rarely from pork or lamb though some people do.
The best accompaniment is the Cucumber Salad (uborkasaláta). This salad is made by marinating thinly sliced cucumber and one small clove of garlic in a dash of vinegar. Soaking it in a water mixture with a small teaspoon of sugar. Refrigerate it for about one hour. Finally, topped it with sour cream before serving.
Other than Hungary, in Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, The Netherlands and Italy, you can easily find goulash as one of their menu items. In the North American and Slavic cuisines, goulash are also enjoyed.
The eggplant, aubergine, melongene, brinjal, or guinea squash (Solanum melongena ) is a plant of the family Solanaceae (also known as the nightshades). I love this vegetable in different ways and today, we are featuring a great step-by-step video on how to easily make eggplant parmesan. This video explains and demonstrates the proccesses involved in making delicious home-made eggplant parmesan dish. Enjoy!
Ingredients include:
2 eggplants,
thinly sliced mozzarella,
grated mozzarella,
grated parmesan/reggiano,
crushed tomatoes (or tomato sauce),
salt, and oil.
1) Put several pounds of meaty soup bones (beef shanks) in a large stockpot with 6 cups of water and 2 cups of tomato juice. Add a large diced onion, several bay leaves and worcestershire sauce to the pot. Bring to a boil for about 10 minutes then reduce the heat and let it simmer for 90 minutes.
2) Strain the broth into another large pot. Set the soup bones aside to cool. In a large skillet, brown about a pound of stew meat. Once the outside of the meat is caramelized, add it to the stock.
3) Dice a pound or two of peeled potatoes into one inch cubes. Add them to the stock.
4) Bring the stock, potatoes and meat back to a boil. Reduce heat and continue to simmer for about 25-30 minutes.
5) Add whatever vegetables you like. I usually use a couple 1 pound bags of frozen mixed vegetables. (corn, carrots, peas and green beans - anything but gross, pasty lima beans). I also usually toss in some petite diced tomatoes. Bring it back to a boil for about 10 more minutes.
6) Meanwhile, chop the meat off the soup bones (they should be cool by now) and add it to the pot.
7) Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Here is another video recipe of the easy homemade Vegetable Beef Soup
Originally uploaded by indianabecajones
Macedonian cuisine (Macedonian: Македонска кујна, Makedonska kujna) is the traditional cuisine of the Republic of Macedonia—a representative of the cuisine of the Balkans—reflecting Mediterranean (Greek and Turkish) and Middle Eastern influences, and to a lesser extent Italian, German and Eastern European (especially Hungarian) ones. The relatively warm climate in the Republic of Macedonian provides excellent growth conditions for a variety of vegetables, herbs and fruits. Macedonian cuisine is also noted for the diversity and quality of its dairy products, wines, and local alcoholic beverages, such as rakija.
Tavče-gravče and mastika are considered the national dish and drink of the Republic of Macedonia.
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Originally uploaded by FanFan 凡凡
Bibimbap is a popular Korean dish. The word literally means "mixed meal." Bibimbap is served as a bowl of warm white rice topped with namul (sautéed and seasoned vegetables) and gochujang (chili pepper paste). A raw or fried egg and sliced meat (usually beef) are common additions. The ingredients are stirred together thoroughly just before eating. It can be served either cold or hot.
Vegetables commonly used in bibimbap include julienned cucumber, zucchini, mu (daikon), mushrooms, doraji (bellflower root), and gim, as well as spinach, soybean sprouts, and gosari (bracken fern stems). Dubu (tofu), either plain or sautéed, or a leaf of lettuce may be added, or chicken or seafood may be substituted for beef. For visual appeal, the vegetables are often placed so that adjacent colors complement each other.
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Originally uploaded by molamoni
The Lentil soup is served for New Year in Europe and in Hungary, this dish symbolizes wealth. The shape of the lentils has the resemblance of coins. There are many different ways to eat it, usually with Smoked Sausage and an important addition is Parsley upon serving. Enjoy!
1 8oz package lentils
I large yellow onion
4-8 cloves garlic
2 sliced carrots (optional)
2 cups potatos, cubed into half-inch cubes optional)
1 bay leaf
1 cup soy yoghurt
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon cider vinegar (optional)
Directions:
For stew, chop onion into large pieces, for soup, leave onion whole.
Wash lentils, changing water 3 times.
Place all ingredient except potatos and yoghurt into a 6 quart pot. For soup, add 2 quartes of water and during the cooking, add additional water as needed to keep soup from thickening too much. For stew, use the same, but only add enough additional water during cooking to create a thick product.
Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer, adding the potatoes (if used) about 10 minutes after reducing heat, cook until lentils are soft and have burst. (Time varies based on type of lentils used - if you use grey lentis, this may take over an hour - add the potatoes 20 minutes before the hour is up! Red and Orange and Yellow lentils are usually done in half an hour.) If making soup, remove and discard onion.
Before serving, stir in yoghurt, and add a tablespoon of cider vinegar (optional).
Made without the carrots and potatoes, the stew version is terrific with fried potatoes and sauted squash!
Serves: 4-6
Preparation time: 1-1/2 hours
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