Oh my goulash, you guys. It’s not often that I use wine in my cooking because it can be pretty pricey, but something magical happens when you add red wine to beef, and it’s something that I just can not resist. Luckily I live near an Aldi store now so I can get a bottle of wine for about $5 that is not only good enough to cook with, but good enough that I’ll happily drink the rest of the bottle with my meal. This One Pot American Goulash is the ultimate comfort food with the richest, most yummiest red sauce ever, thanks to a splash of red wine. Seriously, you’ve got to try this one.
Do I Need Red Wine in my Goulash?
If you want this dish to be as scrumptious as humanly possible, yes. But if you can’t use red wine, you can substitute beef broth in its place. You’ll still have a pretty rockin’ red sauce, but it just won’t be like “make me weak in the knees” good.
Where’s the Paprika?
This is American Goulash, which is basically just beef, macaroni, and red sauce. It’s totally different than Hungarian Goulash. So if you’re looking for chunks of beef that have been slow simmered in a delicious paprika sauce, this is not it. This is just straight up American comfort food.
Can You Freeze Goulash?
Yes! This One Pot American Goulash recipe is very freezer-friendly. Just make sure to cool the goulash completely in the refrigerator first, then transfer to the freezer for long term storage. I suggest freezing goulash for three months maximum. And remember, label and date everything that goes in your freezer!
What Do You Eat with Goulash?
I would consider this a “one pot meal” which means this one dish covers everything you need in a meal: carbs, proteins, and vegetables. If anything you might want some crusty bread to sop up that delicious gravy, or maybe a green salad on the side for extra vegetables.
Can I Add Cheese?
Yes! A common twist on this recipe is American Goulash with cheese. I would choose medium or sharp cheddar, and simply sprinkle it over top of each bowl, or stir it into the pot to give an overall cheesy flavor, similar to my Cheesy Vegetarian Chili Mac.
What Kind of Pot Should I Use?
Any large, heavy duty soup pot will work well for this recipe. For “one pot pastas” you really need cookware that is thick and heavy, so the contents heat evenly. Thin cookware will create hot spots and cold spots, and cause the pasta to cook unevenly. I used an enamel coated cast iron Dutch Oven, which can be found in my Amazon Shop.
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Easy American Goulash
Servings 6 About 1.5 cups eachIngredients
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.32)
- 4 cloves garlic ($0.32)
- 2 bell peppers ($1.58)
- 1 lb ground beef ($5.29)
- 1/2 cup red wine* ($0.72)
- 1 28oz. can diced tomatoes ($0.89)
- 1 15oz. can tomato sauce ($0.59)
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.12)
- 2 whole bay leaves (optional) ($0.30)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp dried basil ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper ($0.02)
- 1/2 cup water ($0.00)
- 2 cups elbow macaroni (about 1/2 lb.) ($0.50)
- salt to taste ($0.05)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Sauté both in a large soup pot with the olive oil over medium heat until the onions are translucent. While the onion and garlic are sautéing, dice the bell peppers, then add them to the pot and continue to sauté for about two minutes more.
- Add the ground beef to the pot with the vegetables and continue to sauté over medium until the beef is cooked through. Add the red wine to the pot and stir to dissolve any browned bits off the bottom of the pot.
- Add the diced tomatoes (with juices), tomato sauce, soy sauce, bay leaves, oregano, basil, crushed red pepper, and water to the pot. Stir to combine, place a lid on the pot, and allow it to come up to a boil. Once boiling, turn it down to low, and let the sauce simmer for 30 minutes with the lid on, stirring occasionally.
- After the sauce has simmered for 30 minutes, add the macaroni and stir to combine. Continue to let the macaroni simmer in the sauce, with the lid on, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is tender (about 10-12 minutes).
- Once the pasta is tender, taste the goulash and add salt to taste. Remove the bay leaves, then serve.
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Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Video
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make American Goulash – Step By Step Photos
Begin by dicing one yellow onion and mincing four cloves of garlic. Add them to a soup pot along with 1 Tbsp olive oil and sauté over medium heat until the onion are translucent. While the onion and garlic are sautéing, dice two bell peppers, then add them to the pot and continue to sauté for about two minutes more.
Add one pound ground beef to the pot and continue to sauté over medium heat until the beef is no longer pink, then add 1/2 cup red wine to the pot and stir to dissolve any browned bits off the bottom of the pot.
Add one 28oz. can diced tomatoes (with the juices), one 15oz. can tomato sauce, 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 bay leaves, 1/2 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp basil, 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper, and 1/2 cup water. Stir everything to combine, place a lid on the pot, and allow it to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low, and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Keep the lid on as it simmers, lifting it only occasionally to stir.
Once the sauce has simmered for 30 minutes (OMG it’s already smelling good), add 2 cups macaroni (that’s about 1/2 lb.). Stir to combine the macaroni with the sauce, place the lid back on top, and let it continue to simmer to cook the noodles for about 10-12 minutes, or until the macaroni is tender. Stir occasionally as the pasta simmers to keep it from sticking, returning the lid after each stir.
Once the macaroni is tender, give the American Goulash a taste and add salt if needed. Remove the the pot from the heat, fish out the bay leaves, then serve that one pot goodness!
I’mma eat that goulash!!
Very good! I made this as written except used Boca crumbles instead of beef to make it vegetarian. I used a small carton of Bota Box since I won’t make it through a bottle before it goes bad. I used whole wheat elbow noodles and cooked per the time on the package directions. It was nice to have some comfort food last night and I’m looking forward to leftovers for lunch today!
Can you use ground turkey for this recipe? Like, a 93/7 blend? Or would that be too dry?
Thanks!
You can certainly give it a try! It should be okay.
I always make this with ground turkey – I’m sure it would be richer with beef but it is still really good and comforting.
Do you put pasta in raw? I am always afraid to do this as it comes out pasty
Yes you do! Trust the recipe, it will be great!
I used ground venison and a slow cooker (browned meat and veggies first, then 4 hours on high, added macaroni with 1/2 hour left to go) and it was phenomenal. Thanks!
I’ve made this recipe a handful of times now and it is perfect. Easy, cheap and leftovers are a plus! Just finished a leftover bowl for lunch today!
I’ve made this a few times now for my family of four and we all love it!
Hi – any advice when doubling this recipe? Thanks.
I’d make sure you have a pot big enough to hold it all :)
“It’s forking great” is the exact thing said to me, when I asked what they thought about this recipe, after dinner. Which was followed up by laughter. If you can’t tell, that’s a dad joke, that my father thought was hilarious. But it got his stamp of approval. It’s also, picky five year old, approved. Which is always a plus. I followed the recipe exactly, though I was very tempted to use Worcestershire sauce instead of soy sauce. It turned out excellent, so I’ll keep using the soy. Topping it with extra sharp cheddar cheese, made it perfect. Definitely adding it to the recipe binder.
I loved this. So comforting. I wanted it to last a little longer and a bit more than 1.5 cups a serving, so I added more pasta (12 oz) and 2 bags of Trader Joe’s sliced mushrooms. I also took your advise, Beth and sprinkled some cheddar cheese over the top of each bowl and also stirred about handful into the pot. When I looked up a few other American Goulash recipes, they all seemed to list Cheddar cheese in their ingredients, so adding cheese didn’t seem to veer off too much from the recipe. Also one evening when I was having it, I decided to throw in a dollop of sour cream since some cooks seem to utilize that ingredient from the Hungarian version. I gotta tell you, it was worth it – an added pleasure to the already amazing flavors.
I didn’t have any dried basil so I used thyme instead. Also I prepped everything in advance, not only the garlic and onion but the bell pepper as well, rather than chopping it up while sauteeing the onion and garlic. I like everything ready before cooking.
BTW, when I looked up all the different Goulash recipes, it was a learning experience for me. Apparently besides the original Hungarian Goulash and the American Goulash, this recipe (with variance) goes by the name of American Chop Suey, popular in New England; Johnny Marzetti (the Italian restaurant in Ohio that introduced this recipe to the mid-west), and Mexican Goulash as well, believe it or not. Another take on this recipe is Beef-a-Roni.
Thanks so much for another wonderful comforting dinner that I will definitely be making again and again. A keeper, for sure.
I love that you learned some history of the dish! And yes a dollop of sour cream is always a good idea.
Weak in the knees good was absolutely correct! Topped it with some fresh grated Parmesan and had some chopped romaine with dressing. Yumm!
Love it! Thanks Erika!
LOVE this dish. It was perfect for the cold rainy october weather we have here in Chicago right now. Ive made goulash before but without wine and the wine is perfect! Also, love the comment someone made about freezing extra wine. I am not a wine drinker so freezing it for future recipes is perfect. Love that you can sneak in other veggies in this dish. Followed this recipe except I also threw in a yellow squash that was in the fridge. Also, Im running off on 4 hours of sleep and put in a can of tomato paste instead of sauce. (I did think it was weird that it was calling for 15oz can of paste but went with it and put in a 6 oz can LOL). I threw in a little more water and all was fine. My 2.5 year old loved it and ate every piece of green pepper and yellow squash in there! Definitely will be in rotation.
Great tip Anna!
Can you recommend a substitute for the wine? I’m unable to have alcohol. Thank you
Hi Marla! You could swap the wine for some beef broth. Let us know how it turns out!
Just use water, and add a beef bouillon cube (the small ones, about 1/2″.) We seldom had wine in the house and never cooked with it, and my mom made this all the time. (I think she might have used rice instead of macaroni, but I could be confusing it with a different one-pan meal)
SO GOOD. I added some cheese before I ate it and it is absolutely incredible!
Nice, I added some habeniero for a tang
Can u freeze this
Yes you can! Just cool down in the refrigerator prior to freezing.