Hungarian Pörkölt

A classic pork stew in a rich and flavorful paprika sauce. Made in one pot and served over noodles or mashed potatoes.

Details

Source	Lauren Allen
Cuisine	Hungarian
Prep Time	10 minutes
Cook Time	2 hours
Servings	5 (about 1 cup each)
Storage	Freeze 3-4 months (without sour cream) • Thaw overnight in fridge, stir in sour cream when warm

Ingredients

Stew

Ingredient	Imperial	Metric
Chuck roast, cut into bite-size pieces	2 lb	900g
Oil	2 tbsp	30ml
Salt and pepper	to taste	to taste
Onions, diced	2	2
Tomato sauce	8 oz	225g
Beef bouillon paste (or 2 cubes)	2 tsp	10g
Water	½ cup	120ml
Hungarian sweet paprika	3 tbsp	21g
Vinegar	1 tsp	5ml
Sour cream	¼ cup	60g

For Serving

Ingredient	Imperial	Metric
Egg noodles	1 lb	450g

Instructions

Sear Meat

1. Generously season the beef with salt and pepper on all sides.
2. Warm the oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Working in batches to avoid overcrowding, brown the beef on each side until well-seared. Transfer to a plate.

Build the Sauce

1. If the pot looks dry, add a splash more oil and lower the heat to medium.
2. Sautee the onions until they turn golden and softened.
3. Add the seared beef back in, followed by the tomato sauce, bouillon, water, paprika, and vinegar. Stir to combine.

Braise

1. Put the lid on, drop the heat to low, and let everything simmer gently for about 2 hours — the meat should be completely tender and pulling apart easily.
2. Take the pot off the heat and let it rest for 10 minutes before folding in the sour cream.
3. Season with more salt and pepper to your liking.

Serve

1. Cook the egg noodles per the package directions and spoon the pörkölt over them.

Notes

• Hungarian paprika is sweet paprika, found in the spice aisle or online. If substituting regular (hot) paprika, use only a few teaspoons instead of tablespoons and adjust to taste.
• Meat substitutions: Chicken, pork, or other game meat all work well.
• Add vegetables: Sauteed vegetables at the end, or small chopped potatoes/carrots during the last 30 minutes of cooking.
• Paprikás variation: Add additional sour cream to transform this into paprikás.
• Nutritional info (per serving, without noodles): 441 kcal, 37g protein, 29g fat, 9g carbs.