I know a guy who doesn’t like goulash. He is quite vocal about it too – vehemently expressing disgust for what he calls “macaroni with ketchup on it.” What the heck kind of goulash is he eating?!
I grew up on goulash. During the years after my parents’ divorce, goulash was a cheap easy meal for my working mom to throw together. She always made enough for the next night too. She taught me to make it with elbow macaroni and tomato paste to give it rich color, making up for how little meat (ground beef) was in it. Seasoning was salt, pepper, and onion flakes. My mother never chopped onions for it. Instead she liberally sprinkled the concoction with dried onion flakes. We had a huge industrial size container of dried onion flakes that seemed to last the entirety of my childhood. My mother must have gotten a really good deal on a restaurant supply closeout. I’d like to get one of those, because I don’t like to chop onions either!
The goulash I grew up eating is American style goulash. I never knew there was any other kind until I was an adult. Ok, maybe I had heard of Hungarian goulash, but I vaguely imagined it might be like beef stroganoff but maybe with lamb instead of hamburger… I’m still not clear on the distinctions, but I’d like to learn.
In the meantime, I need to thank the guy I know who hates goulash. His strength of hatred pushed me to defend my childhood source of sustenance. We didn’t starve, thanks to buckets of cheap, easy American style goulash. In my passionate defense, I remembered how much I actually liked it!
As an adult, with kids of my own, I haven’t made goulash anywhere near as often as my mother did. I made it sometimes as a young newlywed (we were poorer then). It’s a good way to stretch a little meat. I liked to “fancy it up” by making it with penne pasta and spaghetti sauce, topped with shredded mozzarella and baked it in the oven. So classy!
Today, my family prefers taco goulash. We brown the ground beef with taco seasoning and add it to elbow macaroni with plenty of salsa, or taco sauce, or whatever I have. I’ve been known to tear open leftover Taco Bell packets and dump them in! Taco seasoning helps give the dish that richness of color – so it doesn’t have that pale look of macaroni and ketchup! I might also add a dab of tomato paste for that purpose also, the way my mother did.
We eat it with a sprinkle of cheese and some sliced avocado on top with a side of corn and a handful of tortilla chips. It’s so good, I’m sure even goulash haters could be turned around by it!
About this time of year, after the chaos of summer, I always seem to be renewing my efforts to better manage my grocery budget and meal planning. I’m going to make goulash, especially taco goulash (but sometimes “fancy” baked Italian style goulash too) part of my regular menu rotation. It’s still a good way to stretch a little meat and meets the weeknight dinner criteria of quick and easy!
And, I’m going to do some research on Hungarian goulash! Or stroganoff? Or both?! We’ll see.