The Problem

The gussied-up versions of Hungarian goulash served in the United States bear little resemblance to the authentic dish. Sour cream has no place in the pot, nor do mushrooms, green peppers, or most herbs. Least welcome of all are ketchup and Worcestershire sauce—standard ingredients in some renditions. More important, how do you infuse intense paprika flavor without creating a stew that’s so gritty, it’s as if you dumped a handful of sand into the pot.

The Goal

Traditional Hungarian goulash is the humblest of stews and we wanted the real deal—a simple dish of tender braised beef packed with paprika flavor.

The Solution

We wanted to keep the focus on the meat and the paprika. To achieve the desired level of spicy intensity, some recipes call for as much as half a cup of paprika per three pounds of meat, but with that much fine spice, the dish took on a gritty, dusty texture. After consulting chefs at a few Hungarian restaurants, we were introduced to http://www.theredpaprika.com/clientPage.php?page=departments&department=Paprika - paprika cream , a condiment that’s as common in Hungarian cooking as the dried spice. This convenience product was great, but almost impossible to find. Instead, we created our own quick version by pureeing dried paprika with roasted red peppers and a little tomato paste and vinegar. This imparted vibrant paprika flavor without any offensive grittiness. As for the meat, after settling on chuck-eye roast, we bought a whole roast and cut it ourselves into uniform, large pieces to ensure even cooking. Since searing the meat first—normally standard stew protocol—competed with the paprika’s brightness, we referred back to a trend we noticed in the hundreds of goulash recipes gathered during research: Skipping the sear. We tried this, softening the onions in the pot first, adding paprika paste, carrots, and then meat before placing the covered pot in the oven. Sure enough, the onions and meat provided enough liquid to stew the meat and the bits of beef that cooked above the liquid line browned in the hot air. A bit of broth added near the end of cooking thinned out the stewing liquid and made it more saucelike.

• http://www.cooksillustrated.com/recipes/detail.asp?docid=17641 - Hungarian Beef Stew

Hungarian Beef Stew

Recipe Testing

Skipping the Sear, but Not the Flavor

Most stews begin by browning meat on the stovetop to boost flavor. They also call for lots of added liquid. Our recipe skips the sear and goes into a moderate 325-degree oven. Though this relatively low temperature can’t compare with the sizzling heat of a 500-degree skillet, over time, the dry top layer of meat will reach 300 degrees—the temperature at which the meat begins to brown, forming thousands of new flavor compounds. But only the top of the meat will brown; due to the surrounding liquid, the submerged part of the meat can’t rise above the boiling point of water, or 212 degrees Fahrenheit.

RISING ABOVE IT ALL
Even at a relatively low oven temperature, our method still triggers browning—but only on the "dry" part of the meat above the liquid.

Recipe Testing

Smooth Spice Solution

The large quantity of paprika in authentic Hungarian goulash can turn it gritty. Here are two solutions.

COMMERCIAL CONVENIENCE
Hard-to-find Hungarian paprika cream is a smooth blend of paprika and red bell peppers.

HOMEMADE SOLUTION
We created our own quick version by pureeing dried paprika with roasted red peppers and a little tomato paste and vinegar.