Gulyás Soup

2-1/2 cups cubed beef
1-3/4 lb potato
5 Tbs lard
1 cup green pepper
7/8 cup onion
1 small fresh tomato
1 Tbs paprika
6 portions of soup pasta (see recipe below the instructions).
salt, garlic, caraway seeds

Use meat rich in gelatine (shin-beef, blade or neck). Cube the meat into 1/2 - 3/4 inch pieces. Fry the chopped onion in the melted lard (shortening) until it is golden yellow. Lower the heat, then add the paprika, stir it rapidly, add the meat, keep on stirring, add salt. When the meat is browned and all the liquid is evaporated, add the caraway seeds, finely chopped garlic and a small amount of cold water, cover, and braise the meat slowly. Stir it occasionally and add small quantities of water if necessary. The meat should be braised, not boiled. While the meat is cooking, cube the potatoes, green pepper and tomatoes into pieces 1/4 inch in size and prepare the dough for the soup pasta (csipetke). Just before the meat is completely tender, reduce the pan juices, add the cubed potatoes, let them brown slightly, add the stock, green pepper and tomato. When the potato is almost cooked and the soup is ready to be served, add the pasta (csipetke), and adjust quantity by the addition of stock or water.

Csipetke (Soup Pasta)
3/4 cup flour,
1 egg,
salt

Prepare a stiff dough from the flour and egg (do not use water). On a floured board roll it out as thinly as you can. Then with floured fingers pinch small fingernail size bits out of it. (The Hungarian name csipetke means pinched pieces.) Add the bits to boiling soup; stir the soup a few times. The pasta will be cooked when it comes to the surface of the soup, in about 2-3 minutes.

4-1/2 cups small mushrooms
7 Tbs salad oil
salt, pepper, parsley
1 cup very young string beans
about 8 asparagus tips
1 Tbs sugar

1-1/2 cups green peppers
2 medium fresh tomatoes
1 head of Boston or garden lettuce,
1 gherkin
4 Tbs lemon juice
ketchup (optional), parsley

Cut the mushrooms into segments and simmer in oil with salt and pepper and chopped parsley until tender. Cut the string beans to 3/4 inch pieces. Cook the beans and asparagus tips in salted water with a small amount of sugar. Poach the tomatoes, peel and dice. Fry the green peppers on a gridiron until the outer skin blisters up, pull off the skin and remove the core, then dice. Cut the two ends of the cucumber and taste to make sure it is not bitter. Peel and slice the cucumber very thinly; salt. Save a few large leaves of the lettuce and shred the rest of it. Let all the ingredients chill well. Drain the string beans and asparagus but not the mushrooms. Mix everything together, flavor with salt, pepper, lemon juice. (Ketchup is optional.) Let the flavor develop for an hour in the refrigerator. Serve on a bed of lettuce, decorated with sprigs of parsley. If you want to serve the Gundel salad as an appetizer, increase the quantities accordingly. Otherwise, serve it with meat.

Stuffed Cabbage

1/2 cup rice
1 Tbs lard or shortening
salt, stock or soup

3/4 cup onion
1/4cup lard

2-1/4 cups boneless pork, chopped
4 slices smoked bacon
1-1/2 eggs
pinch of salt, garlic, pepper
pinch of marjoram
1 tsp paprika
5 cups sauerkraut
6 large or 12 small cabbage leaves
7 oz smoked meat
1.5 tsp paprika
garlic, pepper

2 Tbs lard
1/4 cup flour
3 Tbs chopped onion
1-1/4 tsp paprika

2 Tbs flour
1-1/4 cups sour cream

Heat 2 tsp of lard, add the rice, and an equal volume of water (to each cup of rice, one cup of water). Add the salt and simmer the rice covered until partially cooked. Saute the finely chopped
onion to a light brown color.

When the rice cools down, add it to the chopped meat. Also mix into the meat the bacon cut into small pieces, 1-1/2 eggs and spices.

Prepare the sauerkraut. If the sauerkraut is very salty and sour, rinse it with cold water. If you are not certain, save the water and it can be used later if the flavor is not salty or sour enough. Remove the heavy ribs from the cabbage leaves; they will be more flexible this way. Place equal amounts of the chopped meat mixture on the cabbage leaves. Fold the sides of each leaf over the stuffing and roll the leaves into a cylindrical shape. Fold under the two ends of the rolls with your fingers. Spread two-thirds of the sauerkraut on the bottom of a large pot. Place the stuffed cabbages on the sauerkraut in a single layer, place the smoked meat pieces over the stuffed cabbages, then cover the meat with the left-over sauerkraut. Brown the onion lightly in the lard, add the paprika, then pour it over the sauerkraut. Add enough water or stock to almost cover the sauerkraut. Add a small amount of chopped garlic and pepper. Cover the pot and let simmer for 1-1/2 hours over medium heat. Add more water as needed. Remove the stuffed cabbages to a plate and keep them warm. Prepare a light roux with the onion, lard, paprika and flour. Thicken the sauerkraut with the roux and the flour and sour cream mixture. Bring it to a full boil. Place the stuffed cabbages back on the sauerkraut and serve. You
can pour some sour cream over the stuffed cabbage before serving.

Variation: Stuffed Cabbage Kolozsvár Style:
Sausage and Canadian bacon and spare-ribs add
to the richness of this stuffed cabbage.

Prepare only 6 stuffed cabbages. Reduce the stuffing ingredients of the first recipe (above) by 20 per cent, replace the bacon and smoked meat with 6 slices of Canadian style bacon, and 6 links of sausage (Debrecen style), each weighing about 3 oz. The sausage should be added for only the last 15 minutes of cooking rime. When the sauerkraut is ready, fry in hot lard 6 spare-ribs (cutlets) (3 oz each). On an oval serving dish first arrange the sauerkraut, top it with the stuffed cabbages, and decorate each stuffing with a piece of Canadian style bacon. On one side of the stuffing place a sausage split in half, and a spare-rib on the other side.

If you want to really decorate your stuffed cabbage platter, slash the edge of the slices of Canadian bacon, fry in lard and sprinkle paprika over them. The fried Canadian bacon will curl up into
a ring which should be placed on top of each stuffed cabbage.

Veal Rib

2-1/4 lb leaf spinach
1 Tbs butter
salt, black pepper

2-1/4 cups mushrooms
2 Tbs butter
salt, pepper, parsley

Six 5 oz. Slices of veal cutlets (boned or boneless)
1/2cup flour
1 egg, 3 egg whites (use the yolk for the Mornay sauce)
3 cups breadcrumbs
2/3 cup lard or butter

For the Mornay sauce:
3 Tbs butter
1/4 cup flour
1-1/4 cups milk
7 Tbs heavy cream
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup grated cheese
salt, nutmeg

1/4 cup grated cheese
1 Tbs butter
1 lb potatoes
2 egg yolks

Cook the spinach in salted water with a pinch of bicarbonate of soda (for color retention). Drain and rinse with cold water, squeeze well, flavor with butter and black pepper. Braise the finely sliced mushrooms in butter with salt, black pepper and finely chopped parsley until the liquid has evaporated.

Arrange the veal into six portions. Salt lightly. Dip the veal slices into flour, then eggs, then breadcrumbs, and fry in hot lard.

Spread the spinach on a large platter and place the veal slices on top of the spinach. Portion out the mushrooms on the veal slices, then cover with the Mornay sauce, which is prepared like a Bechamel sauce, but using the ingredients listed above. Finally, sprinkle the platter with grated cheese and melted butter, and brown the top in a hot oven.

Strudel

For Strudel Dough (For Fillings Click Here)

3 cups flour
2 Tbs lard
1 large or 2 small egg yolks
2 tsp lard, vinegar

2 tsp lard to grease the pan
2 Tbs lard to sprinkle on
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar

Strudel can be made only from flour which has a high gluten content. Sift the flour onto a board. Make a depression in the center and in it place the lard, egg yolk, a few drops of vinegar and enough salted lukewarm water (about 1 cup) to make a fairly soft dough. Work the dough until it peels off the board and starts to blister. Form the dough into a ball, grease lightly, place into a preheated bowl, cover the bowl and let the dough rest in a warm place for at least 20-25 minutes. Meanwhile prepare one of the strudel fillings. Cover a table, about 56 x 28 inch size, with a clean tablecloth. (You must be able to walk around the table.) Place the dough in the center; clench your fists and place them under the dough, pulling the dough with your closed fists. The dough will stretch out evenly. Flour your fingers, walk around the table and stretch the dough by lifting and waving the edges. Be careful. Do it evenly so the very thin dough layer will not rip. If the edge of the dough sheet is thicker than the rest, remove it and re-use it after a resting period, stretching it as just described. If the dough will not stretch or rips, the fault is in the flour (or you need more practice). The dough sheet should cover the whole table and hang over. Most city stores today sell ready made strudel dough, which eliminates the tedious process of making your own. Let the dough dry for a few minutes, but not too long, otherwise it will become brittle. Sprinkle it with melted lard. The filling can be applied by two methods: 1) place the filling in a strip about (4 in), working lengthwise; 2) evenly spread out the filling, leaving a 4-6 inch empty border. We suggest using method 1) for cottage cheese or cabbage fillings, and method 2) for all other fillings. When the filling is distributed, fold the edges over filling and with the help of the tablecloth, roll up the strudel. Grease a cookie sheet, and cut the strudel to fit the cookie sheet lengthwise. Do not crowd the strudel rolls too tightly on the sheet. Sprinkle the top with melted lard and bake the strudels in a medium hot oven to a crisp light brown color. Sprinkle confectioner's sugar over the strudel with the exception of cabbage strudel. Cut the strudel at an angle to get nice slices.

Click Here for Strudel Fillings!