Beef Goulash

I adapted this recipe for Beef Goulash from Cook's Illustrated "The Best Recipe" cookbook. It was very tasty and all three kids gave it a thumbs up! Do not skimp on the sour cream! It totally added another layer of flavor to the dish. I served the goulash over egg noodles with Fluffy Biscuits (click for recipe) on the side. Enjoy!

1 to 1 1/2 pounds beef chuck, fat trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
4 slices of thick cut bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped coarse
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbl paprika
1 1/2 Tbl flour
1/2 cup red wine
1 c. chicken stock
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 large carrots, sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 Tbl parsley leaves, minced (or 1 Tbl dried parsley)
sour cream (a nice sized dollop on each plate)

Heat oven to 250F

Place beef cubes in a large bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Fry bacon in a large ovenproof pan over medium heat until golden brown. Remove bacon and set aside. Drain excess bacon grease, reserving 1 Tbl bacon grease in pan. Add meat to bacon grease in pan and brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Remove meat and set aside.

Add onions and red bell pepper to the pan and saute until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and continue to cook for 30 seconds. Stir in paprika and flour and cook until lightly colored, 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine, scraping up any browned bits that may have stuck to pan. Add stock, bay leaf and thyme, and bring to a simmer.  Return meat and bacon bits to pan and bring to a simmer. Cover and place pan in the oven. Cook for 1 hour.

Remove pan from oven and add sliced carrots. Give a good stir. Cover again and return pan to oven. Cook just until meat is tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Remove pan from oven.

Stir in parsley, discard bay leaf and add any additional salt and pepper, if needed. Serve goulash over egg noodles. Place a nice sized dollop of sour cream on top of each plate (about 2 Tbl). Serve with good bread or biscuits. Enjoy!