Goulash

If you hail from Hungary, you have probably heard of Goulash -- a rich, earthy stew made from big chunks of meat, an assortment of vegetables, and spiked with paprika.  The word "goulash" derives from a Hungarian word meaning "cattle herder" or "stockmen" because these are the folks who originally invented this dish.

That said, if you hail from the Midwest, you have also probably heard of Goulash but this description might leave you scratching your head a bit.

Like many ethnic dishes embraced by Americans, Goulash has received its own distinct makeover over the years (actually making it appear more Italian in origin than Hungarian).  Popularized by cookbooks like Betty Crocker, home cooks added their own spin onto the dish, and over time, cuts of beef were replaced by ground beef, egg noodles became macaroni, tomato sauce was added as a binder, and paprika was eliminated altogether.  Interestingly enough, I'm told a similar dish exists in New England called American Chop Suey.

Of course, growing up in the Midwest, this is the version which I came to know and love.  It was even a regular on the menu in our grade school cafeteria.  And the thing about childhood foods is that you can't really tweak them or else that warm, comforting sense of nostalgia that accompanies them is lost.  Trust me, I've tried several times experimenting with my mom's meatloaf recipe and I've since learned to just leave it alone.

So when I decided to make goulash last week, I knew to make it exactly as my mom did.  And one day when I have children and they decide to make this dish, I hope they do the same.

Like any legit recipe from the Midwest, you start by browning some ground beef with some chopped onions.

You could get really fancy and add chopped garlic here.  But if you want to be really authentic, add some garlic powder.

Next you need noodles.  Theoretically, any short-cut will do, but my mom always used macaroni.  Unfortunately I didn't have any macaroni on hand so I used Campanelle, and as I should have predicted, it just didn't taste quite the same.  Next time I'm going for the macaroni.

Anyway, you want to boil the noodles, and then, while the entire country of Italy cringes, boil them some more until they are almost falling apart.  Seriously.  Al dente noodles have no place in the Midwest.

Then the part that will also have most Italians cringing:  rinse the noodles to get rid of excess starch.

Next, add two cans of tomato sauce.  That's right.  Just plain tomato sauce.  No jarred pasta sauces.

Stir in 2-3 slices of Kraft Singles cheese until they melt in.

Season with tons of salt and pepper and dig in :)  If you felt so inclined, you could top it with Parmesan cheese (the processed kind in the can).

Mmmm, tastes like my childhood.

I couldn't resist my culinary school whims and served it alongside an arranged salad inside a crouton crown.

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