Slow cooker goulash

There’s nothing nicer than coming home to a comforting meal – in this case, a beef goulash that’s been bubbling away in your slow cooker! Serve with freshly cooked rice, jacket potatoes or tagliatelle, with some green vegetables alongside.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1kg/2lb 4oz braising or stewing beef, cut into chunks (see recipe tip below)
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 1½ tbsp mild paprika (not smoked)
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 3 peppers, any colour, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tsp caraway seeds (optional)
• 1 beef stock cube, crumbled
• 1 tsp caster or granulated sugar
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• ½ small bunch curly or flatleaf parsley, chopped, to garnish
• 8 tbsp soured cream, to serve

Method

1. Brown the beef the night before or in the morning. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and fry the meat in batches, until the chunks are sealed and browned all over.

2. Remove the beef and place in a bowl. Pour 200ml/7fl oz water into the frying pan and bring to a simmer, scraping up all the beefy bits on the bottom. Tip into a jug. Stir the flour and paprika into the beef chunks. Put back into the pan with the remaining oil and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes until the dustiness has disappeared. If preparing the night before, cool the meat to room temperature then chill overnight with the jug of stock.

3. To cook the goulash, place the beef chunks, onions, garlic and peppers in the slow cooker. Tip the tomatoes into a large jug or bowl and stir through the tomato purée, caraway seeds, if using, crumbled stock cube and sugar. Pour 450ml/16fl oz water into the reserved stock and pour this stock mixture and the tomato mixture all over the beef and vegetables. Give everything a good stir.

4. Turn the slow cooker to low and cook for 7–9 hours until the beef is falling apart and tender and the sauce has thickened slightly. Season with salt and pepper and stir through half of the parsley. To serve, swirl through the soured cream and garnish with the remaining parsley and some black pepper.

Slow cooker goulash