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A bowl of German Goulash Soup, filled with beef, onions, carrots, potato gnocchi. Sourdough bread slices are on the side.

Gulaschsuppe, aka German Goulash Soup

Hearty and heartwarming, this is a soup you will make all winter long. Simple ingredients, but with rich flavours. Serve with crusty bread and sour cream, this soup even freezes great!
Course Main Course, Soup
Cuisine German, Hungarian
Keyword beef, caraway seeds, carrots, paprika, parsley
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp canola oil
  • 2 lb beef sirloin, cubed into bite sized pieces
  • 2 medium onions, sliced into lengths
  • 4-5 large cloves garlic, minced
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 1/2 tbsp sweet paprika, do not confuse with Hot paprika!
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 1/2 tsp caraway seeds, crushed in a mortar and pestle, see Notes
  • 1/2 tsp ground marjoram
  • 1/8 tsp hot paprika or cayenne pepper, more or less to taste
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 3 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 5 cups beef stock, plus more if needed or desired
  • 2-3 tsp Maggi or Worcestershire sauce, taste before adding it all, see Notes
  • 4 medium carrots, cut into bite sized rounds
  • Gnocchi 2.5 oz per person, see Notes
  • 1 tbsp fresh chopped thyme
  • Chopped fresh parsley or thyme for garnish optional
  • Sour cream for serving

Instructions

  1. In a 5 quart Dutch oven or pot with a lid, heat the oil on medium-high heat.
  2. Pat the beef with paper towel before adding it to the pot. Sear on all sides, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. If you find that a lot of excess liquid is being released, use a large serving spoon to remove it to a bowl. This can be added back in with the stock. Removing the liquid now will help the beef get a lovely exterior. Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp each of salt and pepper as you are searing the meat to get the flavours starting.

  3. Add the onions and sauté until starting to soften, about 5 minutes. If the heat is too high and the onions are scorching, drop to medium heat.

  4. Add the minced garlic, bay leaves, sweet paprika, dried thyme, caraway seeds, marjoram, and hot paprika. Sauté 1 to 2 minutes, to get everything melded and fragrant.

  5. Sprinkle the flour over everything and stir to coat it all well. Let it continue cooking for one minute to remove the raw flour flavour.
  6. Add the tomato paste and stir through.
  7. Add the red wine and deglaze the pot. Let it cook through for about two minutes, stirring if needed.
  8. Pour in the beef stock and Maggi or Worcestershire. Bring up to a boil and then turn the heat down to a simmer, cover the pot, and cook until beef is almost tender (about 40 minutes), stirring occasionally.

  9. Add the carrots, partially cover, and continue simmering for 30-40 minutes. If you want to add more stock feel free to do so here, just warm through and re-season as desired. Once the carrots are tender the soup is ready to serve.

  10. Taste and season with additional salt and black pepper as desired. Re-season with more Maggi, or alternative see Notes or blog post)

  11. If you are serving the whole pot at once, feel free to add 2.5 oz of gnocchi per person to the simmering soup just as the carrots have become tender. Let the gnocchi cook in the soup for about five minutes till cooked through.

  12. *Alternatively, if you are only eating part of the soup this first time around, or plan on freezing part of it, cook the gnocchi separately in a pot of water and divide into the soup bowls before ladling the soup over them.

  13. Stir through the fresh thyme into the soup.
  14. Garnish the finished soup with freshly chopped parsley.

  15. Serve the soup with a dollop with sour cream if desired. Crusty bread, breadrolls, brötchen, rye bread or even soft pretzels are a great side!

  16. See blog post for more details

Recipe Notes

Caraway seeds are easily crushed in a mortar and pestle. Alternatively you can use a rolling pin, just place them in a small plastic bag to contain the flying bits!
Maggi is a seasoning liquid like Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce. Use whatever you can source. Adding a spoonful of Better Than Beef Bouillon paste will also add the depth that we are looking for.
Count on 2.5 oz of gnocchi per person. Only cook what will be eaten with the soup that day. If you plan on storing the extra soup in the fridge or freezer, then only cook the amount of gnocchi needed. Alternatively, you can add 2 or more medium Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed with the carrots.  And if you want, even elbow macaroni will work great.