Hungarian goulash soup

Hungarian goulash soup. Photo courtesy of Ted Kaiser.
A traditional favorite in Hungary, goulash (gulyás in Hungarian) is a hearty soup made of tender chunks of beef, onions, potatoes, caraway, and generous amounts of paprika.
Goulash gets it’s flavor from being cooked slowly over a long period of time. This recipes makes about 8 -10 bowls.
Ingredients
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 lb beef chunks, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
2 onions, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 sweet red pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
5 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tbsp sweet paprika
2 tbsp caraway seeds, lightly crushed
1/4 cup tomato paste
10 cups beef broth
2 bay leafs
3 potatoes, peeled and chopped into small cubes
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add beef and season with salt and pepper. Cook until lightly browned. Remove to plate. Set aside.
Using a large stock pot, add onions, carrots, celery, red pepper and garlic into pot. Cook until vegetables are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
Add beef to pot. Stir paprika, caraway seeds, salt and pepper into meat, coating evenly. Stir in tomato paste.
Add broth; cover and bring to boil over high heat. Add the bay leaves.
Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Add potatoes and return to a simmer. Cook for an additional 30 minutes or until everything is tender.
Serve with hearty wheat or rye bread.
Category: Recipes
About the Author (Author Profile)
Suzanne Urpecz, creator and editor of The Hungarian Girl. Click on my About page for more info.
















I’m a fan of Hungarian Goulash and interested to cook a real traditional – authentic version but many people told me that I need to have Hungarian spices like Hungarian chilli or paprika. Most of the Hungarian paprika I found from my local suppliers are from other countries and is wriiten on the bottle ‘Hungarian Style Paprika’.
Can you recommend names or brands of Hungarian Paprika? Maybe I can order online or ask my supplier to import it, just for me
Nevertheless, I will give this easy version a try. Thank you for sharing
Hi Pixen,
Glad to hear your a fan of goulash. It’s always good to use real Hungarian paprika especially for goulash.
However, trying to find the “real stuff” isn’t so easy.
I’ve included some links to a few of the most popular paprika producers in Hungary. Many of their products are exported around the world. Perhaps, you can find them at a specialty store near you or at any Hungarian/Eastern European shop. There are several types of paprika including hot and sweet. I would recommend the sweet for goulash. Although, if you like spicy then give that one a try!
Szegedi Paprika Spice and Canned Food Producing Company
http://www.szegedipaprika.hu
Hungarian Flavours Ltd.
http://hungarianflavours.com
Also, check to ensure the product label says imported from Hungary. Many other paprika spices are made in the USA.
Here’s are some places to buy Szegedi Paprika Spice online. These retailers are in the USA (I’m not sure where your located).
The Red Paprika
http://www.theredpaprika.com/clientPage.php?department=Paprika&page=departments
Otto’s Hungarian Import Store and Deli (based in California, USA)
http://www.hungariandeli.com/OttosCat.htm
Hope this helps. Thanks and good luck with your goulash!!!
Nagyon gratulálok ehhez az oldalhoz! Egy ilyen szépen összefogott weblapot öröm böngészni!
Ezt látva örülök hogy MAGYARNAK születtem! Nagyon szeretem a Gulyás levest, és remélem mindenkinek ízlik aki megkóstolja. Remélem lesz aki ezt az üzit el tudja olvasni.
Tisztelettel Gulyás Imre
Hungarian Girl, Great recipe. It very much resembles my grandmother’s goulash that my mother made us at least once a week when I was growing up. I was raised with Hungarian food with my father being 1st generation American of Hungarian parents.
I actually was watching TV this weekend and saw a delicious Hungarian Goulash recipe on American’s Test Kitchen, a PBS show in the USA. I liked the recipe so much I plan to make it sometime in the coming weeks. The host talked a lot about making a paprika paste. I agree with you, the key to Hungarian cooking is to use Hungarian paprika. I use Pride of Szeged and am happy to say our local grocer carries it.
Here’s a link to the America’s Test Kitchen recipe. http://www.americastestkitchentv.com/recipe.asp?recipeids=5256&iSeason=10
Good luck with college and opening that bakery. I hope to see your opening posted here. I generally get to Toronto for a visit every year and would love to visit your bakery.
Tom from Ohio