How To Use Garden Tomatoes In Goulash

american goulash

I debated about whether or not to add my 2¢ worth of "American Goulash" to the overflowing pot of recipes on the internet for this classic childhood favorite.

But after I looked at a large handful of them, some of them by famous chefs even, I honestly think that I do have a worthy recipe to share and offer. I seem to make mine quite a bit different than most, I guess.

To me, it's "normal", and the way I've been making it for close to 30 years. (Gawd. Am I that old?? Where has the time gone??)

The main differences I saw are that, (to me anyways), it just isn't goulash without some kind of garden peppers in there, along with other MUST haves like mushrooms, onions, corn, garlic, homemade roasted tomato sauce, crushed stewed tomatoes, and lots of italian-style seasonings!

goulash ingrdnts

Depending on what time of year it is, or what I have left after summer, I either use my own easy, homemade, oven-roasted tomato sauce; or, resort to store-bought tomato sauce if I'm out of homemade.

Luckily, it's perfect timing to use some of my freezer stash that I made from this year's summer garden! 😉 And BOY is it ever good sauce! Thick, rich, and no preservatives and added yucky stuff! 😉

Fresh is always best, and my recipe is here for you, but if you must buy canned tomato sauce, stick to a nice brand that works well for you.

Fresh mushrooms are what I normally use as well, but I didn't want to send my hubby to battle at Walmart for one item.

So it was finally time to use that odd jar of mushrooms in the back of the cupboard. (Sadly, when I got down the jar, there was another one right behind it….must have been on sale is my only guess.)

They actually worked out quite well, though, so it's good to know that you can use either in a pinch, but fresh is still always best. 😉

roasted tomato sauce w jar

This is made in one pot and one pan, so there's hardly any dishes to wash to boot! 😉

Simply melt your butter in a 6 quart stock pot, and sauté your onions for a few minutes. Add your peppers, hamburger and seasonings, and continue sautéing until the ground beef is done and no longer pink, breaking up the meat as you go along.

goulash mixture & noodles

Then add your tomato sauce, stewed tomatoes crushed with your hand to break them up, a little sugar and some parmesan cheese, and simmer for just 10 to 15 minutes or so. When you're done simmering, add your drained corn.

*I mostly only like "white shoepeg" canned corn, because it's the only canned corn that really holds it's pop! Other canned corns are just too mushy for me. So do look for it. Green Giant seems to be the only brand that makes it if that helps!

*This pic is Pinterest-friendly! 😉 😀

While you have your sauce simmering, get a saucepan of hot water going and bring it to a full boil. Add a little salt and your macaroni noodles, and cook until tender.

(*I just use the meat sauce spoon to stir the pasta and let the noodles cook in any of the sauce that gets in the pot for a tiny bit of extra flavor for the noodles.)

Drain the noodles well, and fold into your meat sauce mixture.

american goulash

And that's all there is to it! 😀 A simple classic that has stood the test of time! The proof is in the HALF EMPTY pot after my hubby had at it! Ha! 😀

You really don't need much with this either, if anything! 😉 But I like to serve this with a small tossed garden salad and a little toasted garlic bread. 😉

Or you can go old school and have what we had when we were kids. Just a slice of plain ol' white bread and real butter cut corner-to-corner of course, for getting every last drop of that wonderful sauce! 😉

So I hope that you will give my version of this childhood favorite a try soon! Though mine is different than most, it's truly wonderful and I think that you will be very pleased with it! Lots of extra flavor, yet perfectly kid friendly. Enjoy!! 😀

Ingredients

2 Tbl. butter
1 medium onion, large dice
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
2 small sweet peppers (or 1 large), any color, (such as cubanelle, banana or bell)
1 (8 oz. - 16 oz.) cont. fresh sliced mushrooms, as desired (can sub jarred or canned, drained)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbl. dried oregano
2 tsp. dried italian seasoning
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. coarse ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
4 cups (1 quart, or 32 oz.) of my easy oven-roasted tomato sauce, (can sub store-bought tomato sauce, mild spaghetti sauce or marinara sauce), *if subbing purchased, still add all of the seasonings
1 Tbl. parmesan cheese, fresh grated or green can kind
1 tsp. sugar
14.5 oz. can stewed tomatoes, drain juice and hand crush tomatoes when adding, (*reserve juice if a needed addition later)
1 (7 oz.) can white shoepeg corn, drained, (Green Giant makes it)
8 oz. uncooked macaroni noodles (half of a 1 lb. box, or 2 cups)

Instructions

In 6 qt. stock pot, add butter, melt, add onion and sauté over medium heat for a few minutes. Add hamburger (break up), sweet peppers of choice, mushrooms, garlic, oregano, italian seasoning, basil, garlic salt, pepper, onion powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. Sauté until hamburger is done and no longer pink. (*No need to drain when using extra lean ground beef.)

Add roasted tomato sauce, parmesan cheese, sugar, and crushed stewed tomatoes. Heat to a low simmer, and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes. Lastly, fold in corn so that it doesn't get mushy.

While meat sauce is simmering, add hot water to a large saucepan and heat to boiling over high heat. Add 1 tsp. salt to water and macaroni noodles. Cook noodles until tender. Drain well and add to meat sauce. Fold in well until evenly mixed in.

Serve hot with more parmesan cheese, a simple tossed garden salad, and garlic bread.

Notes

*Only add juice from stewed tomatoes if mixture seems very dry, or add the next day when reheating. Different brands of noodles absorb liquid differently. I used Barilla, and didn't need it.
**Also, I hardly ever buy canned tomato sauce. So if it's too "saucy", you might want a very small can of tomato paste on hand? (I don't remember when the last time was that I actually bought some. So it might be thinner than homemade.) You an always simmer it to reduce it, and get rid of any water that they probably add.