Gulasch is an Austrian national dish. Gulyas is an Hungarian national dish. There the similarity ends. But you can probably say: goulash is an Hungarian influenced stew, highly spiced with paprika.
In Austria you can take your choice of Rinds- (beef), Kalbs- (veal), Schweins- (pork), Fiaker- (beef goulsh with frankfurter, egg & pickle), Bier- (beer), Fisolen- (green beans), Erdaepfelgulasch (potato), Gulaschsuppe (goulash soup), to quote but a few.
Goulash can be made with any meat and is served either with dumplings, potatoes, spaetzle, noodles or rice but most often with bread or rolls. The rolls are then broken up in small pieces and placed in the goulash to soak up the gravy. If there is extra gravy, boiling deli wieners and serving with gravy and rolls is very popular. Goulash is usually served with beer.
Anyhow, goulash is nice. All year round. At all times of the day. In Vienna a fruehstuecksgulasch (Breakfast Goulash) is served in coffee houses and Gulaschsuppe is a popular dish enjoyed by Austrians on New Year's Eve after midnight.
There are of course a hundred and one ways that lead to a perfect goulash. Here are some tips:
And a tip from the prudent househusband: Goulash tastes best the day after.
Recipes serve four persons.
Heat the oil in a medium sized pot and brown the beef cubes. Add the onions and cook them with the meat until transparent.
Add the vinegar, paprika and tomato puree with all the spices and stir well.
Finally fill it up with the broth or water. Stir well again. Add a little salt and pepper. It is wise to use less salt during the cooking process and correct the seasoning when the product is ready to avoid overseasoning.
Bring the whole pot to a boil, then turn to medium and let the goulash slowly simmer until the meat is soft or done (approx. 1 - 1 1/2 hours). The onions are the thickening agent, so if the water evaporates, just add a little at a time to avoid a thin goulash.
If let sit for a day and reheated very slowly for about 1 hour, the taste will greatly improve.
Bread dumplings or cooked potatoes (add a pinch of caraway seeds to the water while cooking) are served mostly with Rindsgulasch.
Fry onions until golden brown. Then add paprika, and veal. Fry meat on all sides, add the salt, then simmer slowly on a low flame (adding a little water if necessary). When meat is soft, which will take about 1 hour, stir in the cream, which has been previously mixed with the flour.
One tablespoon of tomato puree can now be added if liked, also another teaspoon of paprika if goulash is too light.
Spaetzle, noodles or rice tastes good with it.
Fry onions golden brown, add met and fry slowly on all sides (but not too much, as there must not be a hard crust). Now the peeled tomatoes and the peppers which you have cut into strips are added. Stir well. Add the shredded cabbage and the seasonings. Simmer slowly for about an hour.
If liked, 2-3 tablespoons of sour cream can be added when meat and cabbage are tender just before serving.
Tastes best with plain boiled potatoes.
Fry diced bacon, add chopped onions, fry until golden brown, add spices, vinegar, salt and potato cubes.
Fill with water so that the potatoes are completely covered, and simmer slowly until they are done.
Sliced deli wieners, Kielbasa or similar sausages and chopped pickles can be added before serving.
Served with bread only.
Fry onions until golden brown, add spices and vinegar. Add meat, stire once, then add tomato puree. Continue stirring until nicely browned.
Cover with water and simmer slowly for 20 minutes. Add potatoes cut into small cubes. Simmer until potatoes are soft. Adjust seasoning and add a little more water if necessary.
You can 'stretch' the meat if needed, replacing part of the quantity by adding some sliced sausage.