Beef Goulash with Dumplings

Soup or stew? Heck I don’t know. This dish starts out soupy, but, after you steam the dumplings it’s more like a stew. Who cares? It just a very yummy dish of meat and dumplings!

Beef Goulash with Dumplings

Goulash

2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

4 cups onions, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon sugar

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon caraway seeds, toasted and ground

1-1/2 tablespoons sweet Hungarian paprika

1 teaspoon hot Hungarian paprika

2 tablespoons fresh marjoram leaves, minced

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, minced

1 bay leaf

3 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

4 cups chicken stock

2-1/2 pounds chuck roast, cut into 2-inch cubes

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Dumplings

2 cups cake flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup milk

2 tablespoons melted butter

In a large covered sauté pan, heat the olive oil and sauté the onions and sugar until caramelized. Add the garlic and caraway seed. Cook another minute.

Add the sweet and spicy paprika, marjoram, thyme and bay leaf. Sauté another minute, until fragrant.

Add the tomato paste. Deglaze with the vinegar and the stock and add the pieces of beef, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Cover and cook until very tender, about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

To prepare the dumplings, sift together the cake flour, baking powder and salt. Combine with the milk and melted butter, mixing lightly. After the stew has cooked until tender, drop the dumpling batter by heaping teaspoonfuls into the simmering stew. Cover and cook for 15 minutes. Once you have covered the pan, do not uncover while the dumplings are cooking! In order for them to be light and fluffy, they must steam. If you uncover the pan, the steam will escape and the dumplings will boil instead. After 15 minutes, test the dumplings with a toothpick. If the toothpick comes out clean, the dumplings are done.

Place some of the soup in a warm bowl and top with some of the dumplings.