Name: Gulaš
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h 50 min
Total time: 2 h 10 min
Yield: 5 servings
Cuisine: Serbian
Ingredients: 700 g beef chuck, cut into 3 cm cubes; 500 g onion, very finely chopped; 12 g garlic, finely chopped; 30 ml sunflower oil; 12 g sweet paprika; 1 g hot paprika; 2 g caraway seeds, lightly crushed; 2 g bay leaves; 10 g fine salt; 2 g ground black pepper; 800 ml hot fresh water

Yield 5 servings

Preparation time 20 minutes

Cooking time 110 minutes

Passive time 0 minutes

Ingredients ↓

Overview

Serbian beef gulaš with onion, paprika and caraway

Serbian gulaš belongs to a family of paprika stews whose history crosses modern borders, so the useful way to define this version is by its cooking logic rather than by claiming a single national origin. Beef, a large quantity of onion, paprika and slow heat are the centre. The sauce is not thickened with flour; onion cooked until very soft and then simmered with beef provides the body.

The onion quantity may look high next to the beef, but reducing it would change the dish. During the first 20 minutes it softens and loses raw sharpness. During the later simmer, the pieces collapse further and become part of the sauce. Chopping finely helps that transition without the need to purée the pot.

Paprika needs careful handling because it contains flavour compounds that bloom quickly in fat and turn bitter when scorched. Once the onion is ready, the heat is reduced, paprika is stirred in for only seconds, and the beef follows immediately. The aim is a warm sweet-pepper aroma, not a dark toasted powder.

Chuck is chosen because a stew asks for a different endpoint from a quick steak. The meat will reach the whole-cut safety threshold relatively early, but collagen still needs time. The 80-minute gentle simmer after browning is governed by fork tenderness: the cubes should yield under pressure while remaining recognisable, not disintegrate into fibres.

Water is controlled rather than poured in as an unlimited stock. The pot starts with enough to keep the meat mostly surrounded, and the rest of the measured 800 ml is added only if evaporation exposes the beef too much. That preserves concentration and lets onion, not added starch, determine the sauce texture.

Like many long-cooked stews, gulaš is practical to make ahead. Cooling, however, should be as deliberate as cooking: move the stew into shallow containers rather than leaving a heavy pot warm for hours. On reheating, the sauce often needs only a small splash of water before it reaches 74 °C and returns to a spoon-coating consistency.

Practical

Give the onion the full slow sautéit is the principal thickener.

Ingredients

700 g beef chuck, cut into 3 cm cubes
500 g onion, very finely chopped
12 g garlic, finely chopped
30 ml sunflower oil
12 g sweet paprika
1 g hot paprika
2 g caraway seeds, lightly crushed
2 g bay leaves
10 g fine salt
2 g ground black pepper
800 ml hot fresh water

Directions

Prepare the beef and aromaticsCut the 700 g beef chuck into roughly 3 cm cubes. Finely chop the 500 g onion and 12 g garlic. Measure both paprikas, caraway, bay, salt and pepper, and have 800 ml hot water ready.
Soften the onion slowlyHeat the 30 ml sunflower oil in a heavy pot over medium-low heat. Add all 500 g onion and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring regularly, until very soft and lightly golden. Add the garlic for the final minute.
Add paprika and beefLower the heat and stir in the 12 g sweet paprika and 1 g hot paprika for only a few seconds. Immediately add the beef, raise to medium heat and cook for about 10 minutes, turning the cubes until their surfaces have lost the raw colour and begun to brown.
Simmer until the beef is tenderAdd the crushed caraway, bay leaves, 10 g salt and 2 g black pepper, then pour in enough of the measured 800 ml hot water to bring the liquid close to the top of the meat. Bring to a gentle simmer, partially cover and cook for about 80 minutes, stirring from the bottom every 15–20 minutes. Add the remaining measured water only as needed. The beef will pass 63 °C well before it is ready; continue until a fork enters easily and the onion has melted into a thick sauce.
Finish the sauceRemove the bay leaves. The gulaš should be thick enough to coat the meat, with no floury texture and no large pool of watery liquid. If it is already thick, do not add more water at the end.

Practical

Serving

Serve in deep plates or bowls with a neutral starch that can carry the sauce. The fixed recipe does not include the accompaniment.

Make ahead

Cook fully, cool promptly and refrigerate. Reheat slowly; the onion-thickened sauce usually becomes more cohesive after a night in the refrigerator.

Storage and reheating

Keep at 4 °C or below for 3–4 days and reheat to 74 °C. Add water cautiously because the correct sauce is thick, not soupy.

Control points

The sauce is thin despite a long simmerGuidance: The onion was not softened enough or too much water was added at once.Adjustment: Use the full onion quantity, soften it slowly and add the fixed water gradually rather than flooding the pot.
The paprika tastes burntGuidance: It remained in hot fat too long before the meat or liquid was added.Adjustment: Lower the heat, stir paprika only for seconds and follow immediately with the beef.

Nutrition

Serving size1/5 of the finished stew
Calories455 kcal
Carbohydrates11 g
Protein30 g
Fat33 g
Fibre3 g
Sodium880 mg

These figures are approximate and vary with ingredient brands, trimming, moisture loss and exact portioning.

Allergens and food safety

No major allergen is intrinsic to the fixed ingredient list; verify packaged spices if cross-contact is a concern.

Whole beef must reach at least 63 °C and rest at least 3 minutes; this chuck stew continues much longer until fork-tender. Refrigerate within 2 hours at 4 °C or below, use within 3–4 days and reheat leftovers to 74 °C.

FAQ

Does Serbian gulaš need flour to thicken it?

Not in this version. A high onion ratio and controlled reduction give enough body without a roux or flour slurry.

Why cook the beef after it has already reached a safe temperature?

Chuck becomes safe before it becomes tender. The extended low simmer is a texture step that softens connective tissue.

Result: Fork-tender beef in a dense onion-and-paprika sauce with restrained caraway and no floury thickener.

Key: Soften the onion patiently, protect the paprika from scorching and let tenderness—not the first safe temperature reading—end the simmer.