Gulasch
Paprika beef stew from Italy's northeastern borderlands
A bowl of gulasch makes the old Habsburg border visible at the table. In Friuli-Venezia Giulia, this paprika-scented beef stew has settled comfortably among the region's own winter foods, especially with soft polenta to catch its dark sauce.
The sauce begins with as much onion as beef. Given time, the onions soften almost out of sight and thicken the stew without flour. Tomato brings a little brightness; paprika supplies the warmth and the color.
Ingredients
For the gulasch
- 800 g(about 1¾ lb)boneless beef chuck, cut into 3 cm (1¼-inch) pieces
- 800 gyellow onions, thinly sliced
- 40 g(about 3 tbsp)lard
- 20 g(about 3 tbsp)sweet, unsmoked paprika (see note)
- 2 g(about 1 tsp)hot paprika, or less to taste
- 200 g(about ¾ cup)plain tomato passata
- 2bay leaves
- 1small rosemary sprig
- 1 tspdried marjoram
- 400 ml(about 1⅔ cups)hot water, plus more as needed
- fine salt
To serve
- soft, hot polenta
Kitchen notes
- Paprika
- Use sweet, unsmoked paprika, with a little hot paprika for heat. Smoked paprika gives the sauce a different flavor. Paprika burns quickly, so wet it almost immediately after it meets the hot fat.
- Lard
- Plain rendered pork lard gives the stew richness without extra seasoning. Bacon grease would add a cured, smoky flavor.
Method
Take your time with the onions
- Melt the lard in a heavy pot over medium-low heat. Add the onions and a small pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 25–35 minutes, until very soft, reduced, and pale gold, lowering the heat if they threaten to catch. Their bulk should visibly collapse; they are the body of the sauce.
Build the stew
- Increase the heat to medium. Add the beef and turn it through the onions for 5–7 minutes, until the outside loses its raw color and a little fond forms on the bottom. Stir in both paprikas for about 20 seconds, then immediately add the passata and a splash of the hot water so the spice cannot scorch. Add the bay, rosemary, marjoram, remaining water, and 1 tsp fine salt. The liquid should come partway up the meat, not cover it as a soup.
Braise gently
- Bring to the first lazy bubbles, cover partly, and cook at a very low simmer for 2–2½ hours. Stir now and then, especially across the bottom, and add a little hot water only when the onions begin to stick. The beef is ready when a piece gives easily under a fork; the sauce should be thick and glossy, with the onions almost dissolved. If the meat is tender before the sauce thickens, uncover for the final 10–15 minutes.
Finish
- Remove the bay and rosemary. Taste for salt and let the stew stand off the heat for 10 minutes. Spoon over soft polenta, making sure each serving gets plenty of the onion-paprika sauce.