Cooking Corner: Goulash

by Dobbin

On the Discworld are many ghosts and ghouls. Be they the spirits of long dead spells in the tower of art, or spirits in the haunted houses of Genua or Ankh-Morpork, or the ghosts of newbies (or indeed your own ghost!), this recipe is dedicated to all the ghosts you can find on the Disc. One ghost can even be challenged to a duel!

Goulash is originally a Hungarian recipe, but I imagine that it could be eaten in Uberwald, especially as there are so many undead around. There seem to be many recipes around, and this one is my version of the one from 'The Art of Hungarian Cooking' by Paula Pogany Bennett and Velma R. Clark. I imagine Igor could cook up something like this and perhaps it's the inspiration for Fatsup, especially as there is a Goulash soup recipe which is made using smoked sausages.

Ingredients

1 1/2 to 2 lb (700 to 900 g) of lean braising pork or beef, cut into big chunks

2 large onions, peeled and chopped

3 green bell peppers, washed, de-seeded and cut into big chunks

1 red chilli, washed, de-seeded and cut into tiny pieces

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed

1 tablespoon of paprika

1 teaspoon of chilli powder

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon of tomato purée

1 pint (570 ml) stock

salt and freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon of flour mixed with a little cold water

some sour cream

cooking time : approx. 1 hour

Method

Braise a few pieces of meat at a time browning them on all sides, and put aside. Some people like to season with seasoned flour.

Fry the onions, garlic, the chilli pepper and add one of the peppers.

Add the paprika, chilli powder and mix all together.

Return the braised meat back into the saucepan and add the stock, bay leaf, tomato purée, salt and pepper, and leave to simmer for at least an hour (times can vary depending on your cuts of meat). Add the 2 peppers for the last 20 minutes of cooking.

To thicken the sauce add the mixed flour towards the end and let it cook for at least 1 minute.

Add the sour cream just before serving

Serve either with plain boiled potatoes, noodles or rice and your favourite vegetables, or even dumplings.

Next month: A Discworld cake.