In this article we will talk about Hungarian cuisine. As you know, this includes dishes that include a large amount of onions, ground paprika, green bell peppers and tomatoes.
Pork and beef are among the most popular types of meat here. The most common vegetable in Hungarian cuisine is cabbage. Chicken paprikash and goose liver pate are considered delicacies here. Of course, like any other, Hungarian national cuisine has its favorites. This is exactly what we will talk about next. So, top Hungarian dishes with recipes!
Classic beef goulash
This dish has gone through all sorts of transformations in the kitchens of amateur cooks. The beauty of this goulash is that it can be either the first or second course: either a thick meat soup, or potatoes stewed with meat. Although, for example, in domestic kitchens they managed to change the recipe - the potatoes are prepared in a different way.
This can be noticed if you taste a dish, for example, in a Hungarian restaurant in Moscow. Those who have tasted real “Hungary” will definitely recognize modifications in preparation, although no one can say exactly what the difference is. Perhaps the chefs' secret.
Hungarian cuisine: features
If you have never tried them before, then you urgently need to correct this omission. After all, Hungarian cuisine is distinguished by great diversity and rich imagination. It also has the following features:
- Onions and peppers are added to many national Hungarian dishes.
- One of the most popular spices is paprika. It gives dishes a sweetish taste with a slight bitterness.
- Various vegetables are very popular among Hungarians.
- Chefs like to use different pots when cooking.
- Some of the most common ways to process foods are simmering and stewing.
- Second courses very often resemble thick soups.
- Among the most popular desserts are pancakes and strudel.
- For Hungarians, each dish corresponds to a certain type of wine.
Cooking features
A traditional Hungarian dish, beef goulash is cooked in a cauldron or deep frying pan.
Pieces of meat are fried with onions and bacon until browned.
Onions should be in large quantities, about one third of the weight of the meat. Next, hot water is poured in. The meat is stewing. Then add fried potatoes, hot and sweet peppers, tomatoes, and a little flour. Everything is simmered again until done. This is the true classic goulash served in Hungarian kitchens in Budapest. This recipe was used by poor Hungarian shepherds, according to historical sources.
As people who have tried cooking goulash themselves say, the dish is truly delicious and will forever make you fall in love with traditional Hungarian cuisine.
To prepare goulash you will need:
- 1 kilogram of potatoes (about 9 large tubers);
- 0.6 kg beef;
- half a kilo of tomatoes (about 5 medium pieces);
- 3 large onions (350 g);
- 2 tbsp. l. tomato paste (50 g);
- 1 hot pepper;
- 4 tbsp. l. vegetable oil;
- garlic - optional;
- 2 tsp. paprika;
- salt, pepper, herbs - optional.
To prepare goulash in Hungarian style, it is better to take a cauldron, kettle or saucepan with a thick bottom.
With bean pods
Surely, gardeners often do not know where to place young bean shoots. And here is a worthy use for them. They will perfectly decorate “lecho” and will be soaked in tomato juice. It is important that the beans do not have time to fully ripen, otherwise they will turn out to be tough and ruin the entire dish.
Rinse the pods well, peel and cut into 2-3 cm slices. Add along with all the vegetables. Make sure they are well cooked.
How to make the Hungarian snack “Uncle Vanya” even tastier? Follow the tips below! Here are the nuances of experienced housewives that help add the missing zest to the dish.
- As you know, sunflower oil comes in two types: with and without odor. It is better to give preference to refined, non-aromatic, then the dish will turn out much more pleasant.
- To simplify the process of preparing lecho, tomatoes can be chopped in a blender without removing the peel. This will save a lot of time, and the consistency will be very delicate. Only this option is more “Russian”, because Hungarians are used to cutting vegetables into pieces.
- It is better to prepare delicacies for preservation in a special metal container with a thick bottom. This is necessary to ensure that the contents do not burn.
- There is never too much greenery, so if you really want to add a little parsley or dill, don’t deny yourself this pleasure. It is impossible to spoil the dish with this, only to decorate it.
Not all conservation lovers have a basement for storing jars, so they are looking for ways to save them in the apartment.
Almost all high-rise buildings have balconies, so you can display conservation there. However, first you need to equip the place. To protect the workpieces from frost, line the shelves (entire cabinet, etc.) with polystyrene foam. It maintains internal temperature and keeps cold air out. If it is not possible to purchase the material, cover the jars with several warm blankets.
In the apartment itself you can only store snacks that contain vinegar. You can select a place for preservation in the back of the kitchen cabinet or in another secluded corner.
Hello, my beloved review readers!
Dedicated to lovers of canned vegetables!!!
There was a promotion at Magnit and I managed to buy a can of canned beans from Uncle Vanya, called “Tuscan Beans”. The inscriptions proudly display on the can - without GMOs and dyes. And the media say that everything we have is GMO-free...
We love beans!
Ingredients: Ingredients: carrots, white beans, sweet peppers, onions, sunflower oil, tomato paste, sugar, salt, acetic acid, ground black pepper.
For me it is also an indicator that there is no starch in the composition. I don't need extra starch.
The jar sat for a week, I couldn’t figure out what to eat it with to make it interesting. Not invented…
I opened the jar and filled it with vegetables to the top, and no oil or sauce came out on top. In my opinion, there is nothing superfluous!
We ate it simply, warming it up with sausages.
What I want to say is that I liked it, although I always suspect white beans of being too bitter. Here it did not taste bitter, and also retained its shape, which is no less important for the external contemplation of the dish.
The quantity and cutting of vegetables was balanced - no large pieces. The taste is harmonious. There was no vinegar, no salt, no sugar sticking out to the fore. For me, this appetizer could be eaten not only hot, but also cold, simply with black bread. The amount of spices is also normal.
Due to the presence of tomato paste in the composition, I was afraid that my stomach would give out pain, but it did not happen, from which I concluded that the recipe was competent and the correct technological process for preparing this canned product.
Hungarian snacks stand out for their brightness. Most recipes use seasonal vegetables, and bell peppers come first. Whatever you combine it with! Although, many different snacks are also made from other products in Hungary.
Cooking goulash step by step
Heat some sunflower oil in a frying pan. Throw chopped onions into hot oil and fry. To get even closer to Hungarian cuisine, you can add lard to the onions - this will make the dish more flavorful.
As soon as juice begins to stand out from the lard, you must immediately remove the pan from the heat.
Cut the meat into equal cubes (about 2 by 2 cm). Next, you need to add paprika to the fried onions and stir immediately. Fry for another minute. Place the meat on top and sprinkle with chopped garlic. Mix well. Pour water (it should cover the meat). The meat should be stewed, but not boiled.
Next, add tomato paste, which will not only add color to our dish, but also add some sourness. But this is already optional - you don’t have to add it if you’re not a fan of acid.
Then everything is simmered over low heat for about an hour. The result should be a delicious thick meat sauce.
It would seem that the dish is ready and you can dig into it with a fork. But the dish is not ready yet. You need to add the following products to it. First you need to cut the potatoes into cubes and put them in a saucepan. Coarsely chop the bell pepper and place in a bowl with meat and potatoes. For beauty, you can take peppers of different colors. Next, chop the tomatoes and add them to the pan with the rest of the ingredients.
Add chopped herbs, hot pepper, salt to taste. For extra spiciness, you can not peel the hot pepper, but make a small cut in it.
Then you need to mix all the contents of the pan and put it on low heat. Wait a while before adding water.
Traditional goulash is a thick soup of Hungarian cuisine made from meat and vegetables. As soon as the tomatoes and peppers release their juice, you can add water, but so that it covers the vegetables and meat, but no more.
If desired, the soup can be made more liquid. This is controlled by injecting the required amount of liquid.
Next, you need to simmer the dish over low heat until the potatoes are cooked.
Hungarian goulash is served as an independent dish in combination with fresh vegetables and herbs.
Interesting fact: the calorie content of such a dish is only 100 kilocalories, but it is not considered dietary. This is a hearty lunch that is best not put off for dinner.
Yoo iitvaadyot! Or “bon appetit” in Hungarian.
How to select and prepare ingredients
To make the salad beautiful, use peppers of different colors. You will need ripe and fleshy tomatoes. Many appetizer recipes in Hungarian cuisine include carrots. The functions of a preservative are performed by vinegar - table, wine, apple. Vegetables are washed with cool water and chopped. The tomatoes are scalded with boiling water and the skins are removed.
Preparing containers
Before making a snack, select small glass jars without chips, nicks or cracks. Containers are washed from dust and dirt with soda, mustard powder, and disinfected:
- by boiling;
- in a steamer;
- in the oven;
- in a microwave oven.
During sterilization, microbes and fungi die, and the container does not explode, and the preserved food does not mold. Tin lids are disinfected in boiling water.
Hungarian culinary classic – chicken paprikash
This bright and cheerful dish is considered the most popular in this country and abroad. A hearty and tasty dish is served as both lunch and a full dinner.
In general, this dish is pieces of chicken meat prepared using a special technology with the addition of paprika. The dish is stewed in a mixture of cream and sour cream.
This hearty dish is perfect for eating during the cold season. You can use rice, pasta or mashed potatoes as a side dish for this Hungarian masterpiece.
As a serving option, you can simply take pieces of bread - the dish is good on its own, and the bread can be dipped in paprika sauce.
If, for example, you still have some paprikash left for us the next day, that’s okay! After steeping, the chicken meat will become even tastier!
How to cook chicken paprikash?
To prepare this Hungarian dish, you can take a whole chicken and cut it into portions, or you can buy individual parts. The sauce is prepared with tomatoes, which, however, can easily be replaced with carrots, which will give the sauce a sweetish taste.
You will need the following ingredients to prepare this Hungarian classic:
- 1 large chicken;
- 2 pieces chopped onions;
- 2 pieces of sweet pepper, cut into small cubes;
- 3 medium tomatoes or 2 large carrots (grated on a coarse grater);
- 4 chopped cloves of garlic;
- 2 cups chicken broth (optional water);
- water or chicken broth 2 cups;
- 250 g sour cream;
- 2 tablespoons flour;
- oil for frying (or lard);
- spices: black pepper, sweet ground paprika, salt - to taste (it is advisable not to skimp on spices, thanks to them the dish turns out to be truly luxurious).
Experienced chefs recommend using aromatic chicken liver pate for this recipe.
Pork stewed with bell pepper
Let's cook the Hungarian national meat dish. Let's list the necessary ingredients:
- Sweet pepper - four to five pieces. You can take red or yellow.
- Tomatoes in tomato sauce - one can.
- Salt, pepper - to taste.
- Onions - one or two pieces.
- Pork - half a kilogram, maybe a little more.
- Sunflower oil - two to three tablespoons.
Sequencing:
- Wash the pork and cut into small pieces. Fry in a frying pan for 5-10 minutes.
- Cut the onion into rings and add it to the meat. Fry. You can add peeled and sliced carrots to the ingredients.
- Wash the pepper and remove the core and seeds. Cut into cubes or slices.
- Add to pork.
- Open the tomatoes and add the entire contents of the jar to the pan. You can use tomato paste or ketchup.
- Mix everything well, you can add half a glass of boiled water. Add salt, pepper or other seasonings.
- Leave to simmer over medium heat. Once the pork is soft, the dish is ready.
- Serve with rice and buckwheat.
Step-by-step preparation of paprikash
First, wash the pieces of chicken meat and dry them (you can blot them with a napkin).
Heat vegetable oil in a saucepan and fry the prepared pieces of meat until golden brown. Place the chicken on a plate.
The saucepan is now free - now you can put the onions into it and fry until golden brown. Next add sweet peppers, tomatoes (or carrots), garlic. Cook vegetables for 6-7 minutes.
Next, add spices. First add the paprika and mix it thoroughly with the vegetable mixture. Next, you need to lay out the fried chicken pieces and add ground black pepper, water (chicken broth) and salt. Everything needs to be mixed well. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and continue to simmer the chicken for about 35-40 minutes (cooking time depends on the quality of the meat). Let's try.
Next, stir the flour and sour cream. Flour will thicken the sauce. This mixture is then sent to the chicken. After mixing the sauce well, continue cooking it for a few more minutes. Turn off the fire. Let the chicken paprikash sit for another 15 minutes.
Bon appetit, gentlemen!
Salt, pepper... paprika!
So we looked at two main dishes of Hungarian cuisine. Of course, the glorious tradition of Hungary does not end there. Here, for example, people like to cook pasta with cottage cheese and bacon (special boiled noodles called turosh chusa are used for cooking).
Hungarian fish soup, which is made from river or lake fish, is also considered very popular.
Desserts from Hungarian cuisine can also offer some ideas for preparing homemade delicacies. Strudel is considered a traditional sweet dish here. The filling for such a dessert can be nuts, apples, pears, cherries, and so on. The most popular Hungarian cakes are dobos and Somloi dumplings.
