Ahr Valley Goulash

Ingredients for 5 servings:

• 2 kg beef goulash, not too lean
• 1 kg onion(s), roughly diced
• 2 tbsp soup seasoning (vegetable seasoning), homemade
• 2 tbsp beef stock (beef essence or demi-glace), homemade or purchased
• 4 tbsp oil or clarified butter
• 250 ml red wine (Pinot Noir), dry
• salt and pepper
• possibly sauce thickener or flour

Instructions

Working time approx. 45 minutes; Total time approx. 45 minutes

with pure, strong beef flavor, tastes of homesickness and nostalgia

Heat the fat in a cast-iron roasting pan. Add the meat in batches and sear until well browned on all sides. Don’t add too much meat at once, so it doesn’t start to cook, and always remove any browned meat and set it aside before searing a new portion. Finally, sear the diced onions well until they also brown. The roasted aromas that develop during searing are extremely important for the later, robust goulash flavor. Now add all the meat to the onions in the roasting pan and add the wine in two batches, allowing each batch to reduce completely. Then add about 1 liter of water, the vegetable seasoning, and the demi-glace, adding salt and pepper if desired (but you can also add this later). Simmer the goulash in the covered roasting pan over the lowest heat for about 2-3 hours. Check the meat occasionally to see if it is cooked. Thicken with a sauce thickener if desired. However, the goulash usually already has enough creaminess from the braising and the onions. It goes perfectly with savoy cabbage and mashed potatoes, but also with boiled potatoes or pasta and a classic cucumber salad. The taste is simply amazing and even better the next day. This goulash is often eaten in the fall during the grape harvest, as it’s easy to prepare and can satisfy many people (tip: cook a large batch and freeze it).