Hungarian Goulash

This recipe comes from my awesome grandma on my mom's side (I'm so lucky to have 2 amazing grandmas!).  I've heard my mom talk about it before and how it was one of the recipes they ate a lot growing up.  By "they" I mean my mom, grandma, grandpa, and 7 other kids.  I really don't know how they did it. Eight kids? I can't even imagine. But they've always been there for our family and I am greatful for all they do. 

I wanted to try this recipe because one, it was from my grandma and two, it was something different. I love pasta and I love tomatoes but sometimes regular old spaghetti can be boring. And being that I don't eat or make red meat too often, I thought Nathan might like it too. The paprika in the sauce gives it a distinct flavor.  And although my meat definitely could have been more tender, it was pretty good too. I'm going to need to try it a few times to perfect it.

Ingredients

1 lb of beef  ( I just bought a pound of the pre-cut stew meat. To save money and get more meat you can buy a roast and cut it yourself)

1/4 Cup of Oil (I used Olive oil, Vegetable oil is fine too)

1 cup of chopped onion

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/4 tsp of dried thyme

1/4 cup all purpose flour (I use unbleached)

3 tsp of paprika

1 tsp of salt

1/4 tsp of pepper

1 lb 12 oz can of tomatoes (it's the large can-I bought crushed tomatoes)

2 Bay leaves

Hot buttered noodles (I bought whole wheat egg style noodles)

Directions

In large skillet, brown beef that has been cut into 1/2 cubes in hot oil. Reduce heat and add onion and garlic. Cook until onion is tender, but not brown. 

Blend in the flour, paprika, salt, pepper, thyme and bay leaves.

Add tomatoes.

Cover and simmer stirring occasionally until meat is tender 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  Stir often toward end of cooking.  Stir in 1 cup of sour cream if desired.  Serve at once over hot buttered noodles.

*As a side note, I should have cut the meat into smaller pieces.  And I also screwed up on the oil.  I thought I added too much, so I drained it off a little but when I added the flour and spices I had to add a little more back in.  And I should have cooked it longer.  I also didn't add the sour cream this time (as much as I love it) because I wanted to see how it tasted without it. I'll probably try it in there next time. For the 1st time making it, I'd say it turned out pretty good.  Nathan said he really liked it too, so I'll definitely try this again!