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Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Hungarian Goulash

 Today I'm still cooking in the 1930's but with Ida Bailey Allen.   Mrs. Ida Bailey Allen was the Betty Crocker of the Depression-Era.  She was a former Home Economics Editor of "Good Housekeeping," and was President and Founder of the National Radio Home-Makers Club.  Thousands of radio listeners tuned into to her radio show to learn about the latest developments in home-making and she had a staff of dieticians developing new recipes for the kitchen.


The cookbook I am using today is "The Service Cookbook."  This cookbook was published exclusively for F.W. Woolworth Co.  It was sold at the height of the Depression in 1933.  Although it never mentions the hard times once in the cookbook;  from this cookbook on, Ida Bailey Allen did publish some of the first cookbooks created for a budget.  Like the one shown on the right.

So the first recipe I picked out of this cookbook was Hungarian Goulash.  This recipe didn't make a stew like dish, it was all of the meat and veggies served on top of noodles.  My Grandmother used to make this dish and I remember how much I liked it.  I haven't had it for a long time.   
*Note: I updated some of the cooking terms for 2012.

Ingredients:

3 tbsp. of olive oil 
1 lb. of lean beef, any cut (I used ground chuck)
1 large onion diced
1/2 a green pepper, minced
3 sprigs of parsley
1 cup of stewed or canned tomatoes, diced
8 small peeled potatoes 
Salt
Paprika

Put the olive oil in skillet; add the onion and green pepper, and the meat which has been diced large; and fry until brown.  Add the parsley, chopped , the tomatoes and enough water to barely cover the meat.  Cover and cook over a moderate heat for forty minutes.  If you are using browned ground beef you can skip this step and add the potatoes now.  Lay the potatoes, thinly sliced on the goulash; and season with salt and paprika.  Cover and continue cooking for twenty minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.  Border with buttered and seasoned noodles; and serve on a heated platter.    

So, how did the family react to this old recipe?   It was a mixed reaction.  I was thrilled! About half way through cooking I took a little taste and realized I could eat this!!!  It had a lot of flavor to me.  My husband thought it was okay, he had seconds.  But, the kids whose taste have been brought up on processed foods weren't so sure they were fans.  They are so used to processed cheese-like products dripping off of everything they eat.  There wasn't many processed foods in the 1930's this was one of the reasons I also wanted to start cooking out of these cookbooksI wanted to start tasting real food again!:)
Enjoy!

Sherry
I will link this to: 
Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farm
Thriving on Thursdays  at Domesblissity
On the Menu Monday at Stonegable 
Rooted in Thyme Simple and Sweet Fridays
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style
A Pinteresting Party  at Tutus & Tea Parties
Thrifty Things Friday  at The Thrifty Groove

19 comments:

  1. I was married in the 1950s, so so many of my recipes came from my family and my inlaws with a depression era background. I still make this type of dish, but without the potatoes. I'm really enjoying your posts on this subject. Sally

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  2. That sounds & looks tasty...I've not heard of 'oral allergies'..is it the same things as 'gluten free'. I am gluten free and its made a difference. What an interesting post...I would have been one of the thousands tuned in to Mrs. Bailey Allen's radio broadcast I think. =) and she is so lady-like in her dress. Love it. Raise the standard high! (I'm thinking....) =) We could use more standards in our society...so I say...grin.

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  3. I don't know where I picked up this recipe, but I've actually been making it for a few years! It's delicious! Super cheap and easy too.

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  4. My mother made a similar version of this using kidney beans instead of potatoes, a tsp. chili powder instead of parsley, and served it over cooked spaghetti. She would add leftover vegetables sometimes to "stretch" it even more. My kids loved it too. (We added Parmesan cheese and served it with crackers.) I love old recipes and cookbooks! Thanks!

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  5. Sherry, this looks good! I was raised on "depression" style cooking, I just call it 'comfort food'. Thanks for sharing your recipe!

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  6. This looks delicious! Love the recipes in these old books. What a wonderful recipe!

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  7. That looks incredibly good! Im drooling all over :)

    Hugs,

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  8. Sherry,

    seems My mom always cooked from scratch , depression cooking.
    I have never tried potatoes in this before.. interesting & we always added a T or two of Brown sugar to the meat mix :-)

    mom also made a cooked hamb/ onion /tomato sauce mix we ladled over mashed potatoes , still one of my favorites.

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  9. Mom made this but without the potatoes and she did put some slices of cheese on top to melt in the oven. I make this for my family and have taught my daughter how to make it.

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  10. I make a similar dish...and now that fall has arrived in NY, I think I will put it on next weeks menu!

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  11. Hi! I was so thrilled to have found your blog. I have always been interested in cooking from Recession area and such and also collect cookbooks of all kinds! I can't wait to try this wonderful recipe. Thanks for sharing.

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  12. I made goulash last week - just a simple one - I am printing yours - thanks for this recipe and a wonderful blog!

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  13. Yes, my mom made this and I do too, w/out the potatoes though, but it is a nice addition. And we always served it over the small macaroni noodles, nothing else would do! We're having cooler weather, so this will be made next week!

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  14. You grabbed me since I'm Hungarian :) Love those old cookbooks -- not too long ago I found a bunch of videos on Youtube that are depression recipes. I love that no one worried about fat back then -- lard, bacon grease, beef, it was all there!

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  15. Your goulash looks delicious, Sherry. I also love the bowl you put it in...Christine

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  16. Wow, Sherry, this is the exact recipe I got out of an old Betty Crocker cookbook when I got married many moons ago. My husband loves it, but my daughter doesn't care for it. Kids just have different taste buds because most of the food they have eaten, just like you said, is processed something or other. FYI, did you know Betty Crocker was not a real person? It's a ficticious name made up that the publishers thought would sell the recipes. It was like learning there is no Santa Clause when I found out Betty Crocker was not real.

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  17. My mom also made this, except without the potatoes. I make a vegetarian version, and my kids love it! And I found a site with one of her radio shows! http://archive.org/details/Singles_And_Doubles_Singles_H-K. We're listening now!

    Unfortunately, I have to substitute rice or wheat-free noodles now...I have developed a wheat allergy over the past year (not gluten...my throat starts to close up with wheat!). It is hard cooking meat-free AND what-free. I wish I knew why these allergies happen all of the sudden.

    Thanks for the reminder to put this recipe into my plan for next week!

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  18. Sherry, Thanks for sharing this wonderful story on Simple & Sweet Fridays. My mother would cook goulash all the time too! Love all the information on Ida Bailey Allen.


    Jody

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  19. A great recipe I can't wait to try out. I love Goulash and those adventurous enough to try it! I wish more would.

    I came up with my own version of a Hungarian Goulash. While different from your own, I think mine is a unique take on the dish. I'm new to the Food Blog scene and would love some feedback from a pro like you. Check out my recipe if have time.

    http://persnicketypanhandler.blogspot.com/2014/02/hungarian-gulasche.html

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