This Czech goulash recipe is an authentic way of preparing this dish. Many recipes will ask you to add tomato paste and such, but this one will use just dark beer… very Czech indeed :D.
It is fairly straightforward and really delicious! And I will add a bonus recipe for making fresh dumplings (called knedliki) for enjoying this delicious meal.
Czech goulash
Servings: 6 portions
Cooking time: 3 hours
Difficulty: easy to medium
Ingredients
- 800-900 g of beef meat, cut in cubes
- 2-3 finely diced onions (about same in volume as meat)
- 2 tbsp of lard
- broth (preferably home made from beef bone)
- 1 cup max. of dark beer
- 3 cloves of garlic, crushed or minced
- 3 tsp of sweet paprika
- few flakes of chili peppers
- 1 tsp of ground caraway
- 1/2 tsp of marjoram (or oregano can be used as replacement)
- salt (less than usual, the soy and broth also contain it)
- pepper
- 1 tsp of soy sauce (optional)
Dumplings – 8 portions
- 500 g of coarse flour (replace it with half normal flour and half semolina if you can’t find it)
- 300 ml of lukewarm milk
- 1 egg
- 1.5 teaspoons of yeast or half a package
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- half a teaspoon of sugar
Directions
- Add the diced onion in a pot with the lard and saute it until it gets a bit translucent and softer.
- Add the diced meat and saute on medium fire until it stops being pink and gets slightly brown, ~10 min.
- You can now add the sweet paprika. The amount is generous. After you mix it in, it will already start to look like a stew.
- You can now add rest of the spices: salt and pepper, caraway, oregano, minced garlic, marjoram/oregano and chili flakes. Simmer for 1 min.
- Pour for about 1.5 cups of broth. You can add later on more if you like it more liquid. It is always better to use home made, but I am simply adding a cube one.
- Add the 1 cup of brown beer (can be warm) and the soy sauce for more umami taste.
- Bring to a boil and simmer on low fire for 3 hours or until the meat is very soft. Mic in every 30 min. Here is how it looks after 2 hours:
- Serve with spicy pepper pickles and bread.
- For the dumplings: add the yeast in the lukewarm milk mixed with the sugar and let it puff up. Add afterwards the egg, salt and flour. Ad more flour if the dough is too soft. Kneed for 3 min and let it proof until it doubles in a slightly oiled bowl. Cut it in half and shape it in a tube form that is smaller than the pot where you want to boil it (it will grow). Boil it in a pot with salt for 18 min on what side with a lid on. Poke it everywhere with a toothpick to release extra water one you take it out. Cut it with a thread and enjoy this fluff next to your goulash.
