A hearty stew for chilly nights.
The Best Goulash Recipe Ever!
Hey guys, it’s time for a Halloween-themed recipe – “ghoul” ash!
Ha ha, just kidding. Actually, goulash is a hearty, meaty stew from Hungary. It’s usually made with beef, but you can also use lamb, veal, or pork. And it’s good pretty much any time the weather is chilly.
There are lots of different ways to make goulash. The original Hungarian recipe had beef with peppers, wine, and spices (especially paprika). Grandma’s easy version added tomatoes or tomato sauce, as well as noodles. And since beef, noodles, and tomatoes go so well with cheese, my version throws in some shredded sharp cheddar – because hey, recipes are supposed to evolve, right?
This takes about 40 minutes to make, but only 10 to 15 minutes of that is actual cooking time. You brown the beef and drain it, then get it simmering in a big, deep skillet (or a Dutch oven) with tomatoes, beef broth and spices. After about 10 minutes, you stir in the noodles and let them cook until they’re tender. And right before you serve it, you yank out the bay leaves, sprinkle on the cheese, and cover it just long enough to let it melt.
The finished meal is hot, savory and incredibly filling – and there’s nothing in it that the average kid wouldn’t be happy to eat. On a cold night, it warms you right up from the inside out.
Easy Goulash Recipe
Ingredients:
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 teaspoons seasoned salt, I used Lawry’s
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 (15oz) cans diced tomatoes
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 cups beef broth
1 (15oz) can tomato sauce
1 TB dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 large bay leaves
2 cups dry elbow noodles
Kosher salt and pepper, to taste
1 and 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
NOTE: if you do not have a large, deep skillet, you can use a large pot or dutch oven.
Directions:
- Season beef with seasoned salt. Saute ground beef and onions in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat until cooked. Drain.
- Add garlic, broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, oregano, and bay leaves Stir well. Cover and allow to simmer for 10-12 minutes.
- Add the uncooked elbow macaroni to skillet, stir well cover with lid and simmer for about 12-18 minutes more, or until noodles are tender.
- Turn off heat, remove the bay leaves, and add shredded cheddar cheese. TIP. Place lid back on until cheese is melted.
Enjoy!
Do you love Family Fresh Meals? Never miss out on FUN new meals or Easy Lunchbox Ideas for the Family and SIGN UP to have my posts sent right to your inbox! It’s EASY PEASY! Just CLICK HERE and enter your email!
XO
Corey, Darryl, Big D & Little D
Looking for more free recipes? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Grandma's Easy Goulash Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds lean ground beef
- 2 teaspoons seasoned salt, I used Lawry's
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 15oz cans diced tomatoes
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 cups beef broth
- 1 15oz can tomato sauce
- 1 TB dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 large bay leaves
- 2 cups dry elbow noodles
- Kosher salt and pepper, to taste
- 1.5 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
Note: If you do not have a large deep skillet, you can use a large pot or dutch oven.
- Season beef with seasoned salt. Saute ground beef and onions in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat until cooked. Drain.
- Add garlic, broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, oregano, and bay leaves Stir well. Cover and allow to simmer for 10-12 minutes.
- Add the uncooked elbow macaroni to skillet, stir well cover with lid and simmer for about 12-18 minutes more, or until noodles are tender.
- Turn off heat, remove the bay leaves, and add shredded cheddar cheese. TIP. Place lid back on until cheese is melted.
Video
Save this recipe for later! Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your recipe box!
Nutrition Information:
Nutrition Disclaimer
Family Fresh Meals is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Neyssa@LatinaMomMeals says
This recipe is amazing! My family tried it and my super picky daughter went back for thirds. The melted cheese, oooooh lala so good! Keep the recipes coming. 🙂 Can’t wait to see what else you have.
Corey says
So happy the family loved it 🙂
Kathleen says
I can’t believe that this is the first time that I am commenting on one of your recipes, Corey, because you have posted so many delicious ones. I made this goulash this evening and it was consumed and enjoyed by all. I have all boys at my home and am always looking for new recipes to keep everyone satisfied. Thank you so much!!
Corey says
Awwwwwwe, Kathleen! Thanks for such a lovely comment! I am so happy you are loving my recipes 🙂
Kimmi says
I can’t wait to try this! What type of tomatoes do you use? Crushed?
Corey says
You could use either. I have actually made it with both!
Richard says
Making this tonight for dinner! In step four, it says stir well the lid. Are you meaning with the lid or without?
Thanks!
Corey says
You want to simmer with the lid on, yes.
Teresa S. Sallee says
Do you have a lasagna sauce recipe?
Sandy says
I purchased fire roasted chopped tomatoes in error. Can I use them in this goulash recipe? Also I made your crock pot bacon cheeseburger soup last night and it was amazing. My husband suggested we have it when our neighbors come over. The dill pickles made it really different . Loved that addition. My grand children keep asking for your recipes and my daughter in law tells them that they are just special meals that grandma makes. Lol!
Thank you
Karen I says
Cannot wait to try this. Looks amazing, will get a little heavy handed with the cheddar cheese as my husband is a cheese nut. LOL
Corey says
We are cheese nuts here too! I hope you loved it!
SLO Cook says
If your ground beef has enough fat where you need or want to drain it then don’t add any seasonings, onion, garlic or anything else while browning it. Why throw flavors out with the fat?
Hearty, flavorful and very comforting. Easy to tweak to your own taste. Like someone else mentioned, I went heavy on the cheese, used sharp cheddar and then really sinned and put a dollop of sour cream on top.
Corey says
I love the addition of sour cream on top! YUM!
George says
We made this tonight for supper it was excellent, added a tsp of Italian seasoning and I didn’t have any elbow pasta so we used penne. We liked it very well with the larger pasta gave it more depth of flavor. Thanks for the recipe it’s a keeper.
Corey says
So happy you loved it George!
Kathi says
I have a similar recipe from my ex-mother-in-law but you use canned spaghetti,drained kidney beans and then bake it. I like that this uses fresher ingredients but with the tomatoes and the tomato sauce I would recommend using 1 Tablespoon of white sugar to cut the acid in the tomatoes. Also – Lawry’s seasoning salt is loaded with added MSG so I left that out as I am highly allergic to added MSG. I also used Better than Bouillon Beef Base – low sodium and no MSG added there either. For the cheese, I used Mexican Blend shredded cheese as that is what I had on hand and I mixed in 1 cup with the beef and other ingredients. After I sauted the hamburger, I still put every thing into a 350 degree F oven and baked it for 30 minutes. About 5 minutes before it was done, I spread the other 1/2 cup of cheese over the top and continued cooking it melt the cheese.
Michelle says
Wow, can’t believe I never thought to add cheese to this before!! I don’t care for the acidity of tomato sauce, but the cheese would definitely cut that out. Thank You so much!!
Stephanie says
Made this recipe and it was absolutely delicious!! Recipe is super easy to follow and enjoyable. Received many compliments. Only thing I would change is a higher grade pasta, I used what I had on hand and it came out a bit mushy.
Husband can’t wait to make it again!
Pam says
Frequently requested since I first tried about a year ago.
michele a says
we loved the goulash. Can you tell me what size the serving is? i see it says serving for 8 but it doesnt say serving size
Tina Leon says
My preteen boys (10 & 13) love this when I make it for dinner and boy can they eat!!!
They don’t usually like leftovers but I always double this recipe because they love to eat it the next day for lunch.
Adrianne Dyer says
So. Incredibly. Delicious. Will now be my go-to goulash. Great flavor. I did use diced tomatoes with seasonings (garlic, etc) but everything else was exactly like the recipe.
Barbara says
It looked like a soup when I finished. So, I drained it and then it looked like goulash. Good flavor but next time I will only add 1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce and use drained petite diced tomatos (just my preference on the size of the tomatos)
Christine @ myblissfulmess.com says
Christine’s Notes: I made this in the Dutch oven on the stove, and it came out absolutely delish! Goulash (the American kind, which is very different from the Hungarian version) is one of my family’s favorites. This one sticks to the tradition of simple ingredients using pantry staples but bringing lots of yummy flavors. To keep the calories (or WW points) down, I used 1 pound of 93% lean ground beef, 1 pound 99% fat-free ground turkey breast, and reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese, stirring the cheese into the goulash rather than melting it on top, all with fabulous results!
Jodi says
Absolutely delicious!!! Just made this for supper, my husband loved it!!! This coming from a man who hates pasta dishes!!!!
Jodi says
I forgot to rate it if there were 6 stars!!! I’d give it!!!!
Corey says
Awww. Thanks Jodi!
Jk says
Hey I’m from the uk and want to cook your recipe and was wondering is your tomato sauce you use pasta sauce ??
Corey says
No it is just tomato sauce. A little different that pasta sauce. It’s not seasoned like pasta sauce.