COOK THE NATIONAL DISH OF HUNGARY: GOULASH
COOK THE NATIONAL DISH OF HUNGARY: GOULASH
In the past few weeks, I've gathered a whole new bunch of followers, so for you who are new to the blog, EAT THE WORLD is my attempt to cook and eat a meal from every country in the world, pairing it with a movie from that country. So this month - ok, last month - was the one year anniversary of starting my EAT THE WORLD challenge. And I've accomplished a measly 16 countries. That is quite the sad. I have not been very proactive with this stuff. Mainly because sometimes it is quite a mission to get certain ingredients, and usually by the time the weekend hits, I am shattered! These EAT THE WORLD's can work out quite costly too when you factor in all the new or even exotic ingredients plus a movie accompaniment. But, I promise I am trying to kick it back into gear again, right in time for HUNGARY! Cos, you know, I was hungry for some Hungary!
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Recipe for Hungarian Goulash
Ingredients
1.5 lbs beef chuck roast or stew meat
3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/2" diagonals
2 medium red potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4" cubes
8 oz. fresh mushrooms, quartered
1/2 onion, chopped
1.5 cloves garlic, minced
2 cup beef broth
1.5 tbs tomato paste
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1/8 cup Hungarian sweet paprika
1/8 cup brown sugar
1 tsp dried mustard
1 tsp salt, to taste
sprinkle of freshly ground pepper
Directions
Place beef in crock pot or slow cooker.
Place the carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, onion and garlic in the crock pot.
Whisk together remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and then add to the crock pot.
Cover and heat on high for 4 to 5 hours, or until the beef and vegetables are tender.
Serve with warm bread.
Hungary Movie Pairing: Son of Saul
So, I was having a hard time picking what countries I wanted to do, and came up with the brilliant (?) idea of selecting countries based on movies - and finding the movies via the Oscar's foreign film awards categories. Son of Saul won that category this year, and so I thought here we go excellent choice. Oh my word this movie is horrific. In the sense that it is a damn good movie, but it is incredibly traumatizing and difficult to watch. Any movie about the Holocaust is a difficult subject matter to start with but I did find this one very difficult to watch fully. Set in the Auschwitz concentration camp, this Hungarian directed film, follows the journey of a Hungarian worker in the Sonderkommando. Workers of the Sonderkammando were Jewish prisoners who were forced to dispose of the victims of the gas chambers. The opening scenes, and numerous times throughout, depict these horrific events, and it is so very disturbing to watch. One day he comes across a boy who somehow manages to survive the gas chamber, and recognizes him, only to watch officials at the gas chamber suffocate him. The rest of the film depicts Saul's struggle to find a rabbi to give the boy a proper Jewish burial. This movie was difficult to watch, and while I strongly believe that it is important for everyone to learn about the atrocities of extremism and racism, particularly in present days, this is genuinely a tough one. I'm quite a sensitive person myself, and it did give me some nightmares for a few days, so I recommend watching it with caution. Other than the subject matter being quite difficult, it is an incredible film based on directing and acting. Watch Son of Saul on Amazon.
The Traveling Ginger Verdict
This meal was super easy to make. I was worried I wasn't going to find Hungarian Paprika but I found it in my local Publix which is a win! The only thing I did not like about this meal, was how it smelt. It tasted pretty good - but every time I lifted the lid on my crockpot, or warmed up some of the leftovers for it, I wanted to puke. I don't understand how it could taste decent but smell so weird!!! Even now, the thought of the smell makes me never want to cook it again. I wonder if there is something wrong with my nose because other people could not smell what I was smelling. Anyway, it tasted pretty good, though I wouldn't say it was something I love. I'm not the biggest fan of stews, but the recipe was so easy and I didn't have to do much work for it.
Rating: 6/10
Have you been to Hungary? Have you eaten Goulash before? What other food should I make from Hungary? Where should I cook next?
