T
TasunkaWitko
Guest
John’s Borsos Tokány
(Hungarian Peppered Beef)
John’s Notes: This is really mild, but has a rich, savory sauce and taste with a wonderful depth and satisfying feel.
3 LBS chuck & sirloin, any combination. Have butcher cut the sirloin ½ to ¾ inch thick and get the thinnest chuck you can.
4 Generous TBSP of sweet hungarian paprika
Olive oil
1 Large onion finely chopped
Kosher salt to taste, about 1 generous TBSP
CBP to taste, about 1 TSP
5 or 6 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Cups Dry White wine (Gotta be white for this, jug-wine works fine)
1 Large can Tomato Paste (6 or 8oz? The tall thin one)
Cut beef into strips about 2 to 3 inches long. If you have a thick chuckie, slice it into strips
about 1 inch wide, then flip it on its side and slice that in half. Sprinkle 1 TBSP paprika over meat and mix well. Set aside.
Sautee the onion in a decent splash of oil until golden. Remove from heat into a container.
Add another splash of oil and sautee meat over HI heat and brown well on all sides in an uncovered skillet or pot. Season with remaining paprika, salt and pepper once it is almost done.
Immediately add the garlic, onions and wine and reduce heat to a gentle simmer, covered.
After about 20 minutes, uncover skillet and add tomato paste and a splash of water or wine to turn paste into a thick gravy.
Continue simmering gently until the sauce thickens well, about 30 minutes, maybe more. Let the liquid reduce as much as possible. It will become a thick smooth maroon sauce.
Taste it at this point and add salt and pepper and paprika if necessary.
Serve immediately with rice, oven roasted or mashed potatoes.
ron's notes:
this one is a winner!
i made this last night and followed the instructions to the letter. the result was exactly as advertised, rich and savory, mild yet spicy. here is a "plated" picture with the borsos tokany on a bed of parmesan-chive mashed potatoes:
in doing a little resarch for this dish, i consulted time-life's "foods of the world series." in the volume titled "vienna's empire" (of which hungary was a part), i learned that one of the hallmarks of hungarian cooking is the sauteeing of chopped onion before most dishes. traditionally, this is done in lard, but that of course is a dirty word these days, so oilive oil or butter are used, which aren't much better. it is important to saute the onions to the point of being golden and only just a tiny bit farther. i also learned that hungary has four national 'pepper dishes:" gulyas, porkolt, paprikas and tokany. all four are varieties of hot, spicy stew with some similarities, but also with subtle and important differences. there was a version of borsos tokany in there with mushrooms (borsos belzintokany), and the recipe and method was very, very similar to john's version above.
this dish was well-received by the family, with the only criticism being that it was a bit salty. the recipe called for kosher salt, but i only had sea salt and this might have accounted for some of the saltiness. otherwise, i recommend perhaps cutting the salt in half. i concentrated so hard on the dish itself, i forgot a side dish! mixed vegetables, green beans, peas or cabbage would be a good side for this.
(Hungarian Peppered Beef)
John’s Notes: This is really mild, but has a rich, savory sauce and taste with a wonderful depth and satisfying feel.
3 LBS chuck & sirloin, any combination. Have butcher cut the sirloin ½ to ¾ inch thick and get the thinnest chuck you can.
4 Generous TBSP of sweet hungarian paprika
Olive oil
1 Large onion finely chopped
Kosher salt to taste, about 1 generous TBSP
CBP to taste, about 1 TSP
5 or 6 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Cups Dry White wine (Gotta be white for this, jug-wine works fine)
1 Large can Tomato Paste (6 or 8oz? The tall thin one)
Cut beef into strips about 2 to 3 inches long. If you have a thick chuckie, slice it into strips
about 1 inch wide, then flip it on its side and slice that in half. Sprinkle 1 TBSP paprika over meat and mix well. Set aside.
Sautee the onion in a decent splash of oil until golden. Remove from heat into a container.
Add another splash of oil and sautee meat over HI heat and brown well on all sides in an uncovered skillet or pot. Season with remaining paprika, salt and pepper once it is almost done.
Immediately add the garlic, onions and wine and reduce heat to a gentle simmer, covered.
After about 20 minutes, uncover skillet and add tomato paste and a splash of water or wine to turn paste into a thick gravy.
Continue simmering gently until the sauce thickens well, about 30 minutes, maybe more. Let the liquid reduce as much as possible. It will become a thick smooth maroon sauce.
Taste it at this point and add salt and pepper and paprika if necessary.
Serve immediately with rice, oven roasted or mashed potatoes.
ron's notes:
this one is a winner!
i made this last night and followed the instructions to the letter. the result was exactly as advertised, rich and savory, mild yet spicy. here is a "plated" picture with the borsos tokany on a bed of parmesan-chive mashed potatoes:
in doing a little resarch for this dish, i consulted time-life's "foods of the world series." in the volume titled "vienna's empire" (of which hungary was a part), i learned that one of the hallmarks of hungarian cooking is the sauteeing of chopped onion before most dishes. traditionally, this is done in lard, but that of course is a dirty word these days, so oilive oil or butter are used, which aren't much better. it is important to saute the onions to the point of being golden and only just a tiny bit farther. i also learned that hungary has four national 'pepper dishes:" gulyas, porkolt, paprikas and tokany. all four are varieties of hot, spicy stew with some similarities, but also with subtle and important differences. there was a version of borsos tokany in there with mushrooms (borsos belzintokany), and the recipe and method was very, very similar to john's version above.
this dish was well-received by the family, with the only criticism being that it was a bit salty. the recipe called for kosher salt, but i only had sea salt and this might have accounted for some of the saltiness. otherwise, i recommend perhaps cutting the salt in half. i concentrated so hard on the dish itself, i forgot a side dish! mixed vegetables, green beans, peas or cabbage would be a good side for this.