Bográcsgulyás (Goulash)

Ingredients

2 medium onions, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons lard
1.1 kg stewing steak, cubed
5 cloves garlic, crushed with a few caraway seeds and a little salt
2 tablespoons Hungarian paprika
2.8 litres warm beef stock
½ a tin of chopped tomatoes
2 green peppers, cut into rings
500 g potatoes, diced

Method

Preheat the lard to a low temperature in large pan.
Add the onions, and stew until glossy, but not brown.
Add the beef cubes and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove from the heat, add the garlic mixture and the paprika and stir.
Once the paprika has stewed for 20 seconds or so, add the warm beef stock. Do not allow the paprika to over cook or it will taste bitter.
Return to the heat, cover and stew, still at a low temperature, for about an hour.
Add the tomatoes and peppers and simmer slowly for a further 30 minutes, adding to water, to maintain a soup-like consistency if necessary.
Finally, add the potatoes and cook until they are done.
Serve with small dumplings, which should be added a few minutes before the end of the cooking time.