My Mother's Authentic German Goulash Soup Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is German goulash made of? ›

This German Goulash is what the Swabians in Germany call “Hungarian Goulash”. Ha! A juicy and tender beef stew made with paprika, peppers, and a red wine sauce. Originally goulash (gulyás) is from Hungary but over the centuries this traditional stew obviously traveled into different cuisines, including German cuisine.

There are two kinds of goulash: Hungarian goulash, which calls for the slow-simmered beef to be served alongside egg noodles, and American goulash, which pulls in ground beef and cooks the noodles in the pot alongside the sauce.

The origins of goulash have been traced to the 9th century, to stews eaten by Magyar shepherds. Before setting out with their flocks, they prepared a portable stock of food by slowly cooking cut-up meats with onions and other flavourings until the liquids had been absorbed.

The basic ingredients include onions, peppers, tomatoes, meat, paprika, caraway seeds, potatoes and homemade noodles (csipetke). Wine, carrots and other ingredients are optional and reflect regional and family variations. Excepting paprikás, the Hungarian stews do not rely on flour or roux for thickening.

Goulash, or as Hungarians call it, gulyás, means “herdsman.” Its origins date back to the 9th century Magyar shepherds as a simple meat and onion stew prepared in heavy iron kettles known as bogracs. In the 15th century invading Ottoman Turks introduced a new spice to Hungary, paprika.

Pfefferpotthast (Low German: Piäpperpottharst) is a traditional German stew. It comes from the cuisine of Westphalia.

American goulash, sometimes called slumgullion, American Chop Suey, or even Beef-a-Roni, is an American comfort-food dish popular in the Midwest and South. Besides the name, there is no real connection to Hungarian goulash in terms of the flavor or ingredients.

Hungarian Goulash is a thick meat and vegetable stew with a broth that's heavily seasoned with paprika, while American Goulash is a quick dish made from ground beef, tomato sauce, herbs, and elbow macaroni noodles. It also goes by the name of American Chop Suey.

goulash in American English

2. a heterogeneous mixture; hodgepodge; jumble.

The national dish of Hungary! Boldly flavoured with stacks of paprika, lots of onion, garlic and capsicum/bell peppers, with fall apart hunks of beef. It's sort of a stew, sort of a soup.

Is goulash German or Hungarian? ›

Goulash is a very popular dish in Europe and like other European recipes Gulasch, even though it is best known as Hungarian Goulash in the US, is a dish that is cooked in many European countries with slight differences – for example, German Goulash, Beef Bourguignon, and Viennese Goulash.

Hungarian goulash and American goulash. Hungarian goulash is a thick soup with meat and vegetables, usually seasoned with paprika. American goulash is very different. It generally has tomato sauce, macaroni and beef.

Common soups in German restaurants include oxtail, beef or chicken broth with noodles, dumplings, or rice, goulash, split pea, cream of asparagus, turtle soup (Echte Schildkrötensuppe) and cream of lobster.

Whisk a teaspoon of flour in a little cold water to make a slurry, then stir into the stew as it's cooking. Don't add dry flour directly to the stew as it may clump. After adding the slurry, bring the stew to boil. This will cook out the flour taste and allow the starch to swell.

Serve up a hearty goulash for the ultimate comforting stew on winter nights. Searching for the perfect accompaniment? Try mashed potato, dumplings or your favourite veg.

Goulash, aka Gulasch, is such a traditional German food. I'm used to having it over boiled potatoes. To me, they are so perfect for soaking up all that delicious gravy. Anna's photo shows it being served over rice.

American goulash, sometimes called slumgullion, American Chop Suey, or even Beef-a-Roni, is an American comfort-food dish popular in the Midwest and South.