Hungarian Recipes, 1923

Note: This article has been excerpted from a larger work in the public domain and shared here due to its historical value. It may contain outdated ideas and language that do not reflect TOTA’s opinions and beliefs.

From Recipes of All Nations by Countess Morphy, 1923.

Hungarian cookery, similar in many respects to Austrian cookery, is distinguished by its more highly seasoned and pungent dishes, and by a more generous use of onions, fat and cream. It invariably evokes visions of bright scarlet dishes, tinted by the favourite Hungarian condiment, paprika, which looks far more vicious and fiery than it actually is. It has, in fact, a distinctive and pleasing flavour, and is only slightly hot. It is used in soups, in fish dishes, in meat dishes—in fact, in almost every Hungarian dish with the exception of sweets and puddings.

Among the most famous of all Hungarian dishes are their gulyás and their paprikas, the former being either a soup or a stew, the latter being divided into pörkölt, the paprika dish without sour cream, and the other being paprika dishes containing sour cream. Great use is made of fresh green or red peppers (the sweet Spanish pimiento), of sauerkraut and, as in so many European countries, of sour cream or milk. There is an abundance of fresh-water fish and of Dublin prawns, for which we find excellent recipes.

Altogether, Hungarian cooking at its best is excellent, and it can boast of quite a number of typical national dishes.

Soups

Gulyásleves
(Gullash soup)

First and foremost among Hungarian soups comes this one, of which there are many versions, some containing many different kinds of meat, others only one or two; but the principle remains the same, and the two predominant flavours are those of onions and paprika.

I give the simpler recipe for gullash soup and one which is apt to be more popular than that made with beef, pork, mutton and smoked ham.

Ingredients: 2 lbs. of beef, 1 or 2 smoked sausages, 1 lb. of onions, 1 or 2 fresh tomatoes, 2 red or green pimientos, 2 or 3 potatoes, 2 tablespoons of paprika, 3 pints of water, salt, lard.

Method: Shred the onions and cook to a light golden colour in the hot lard. Then add the meat, cut in inch-long pieces, the chopped tomatoes, the shredded pimientos or paprikas, and season with the paprika powder and salt. Simmer very gently for about 45 minutes, then add the hot water gradually, cover the saucepan or casserole and simmer very gently for about 2 hours. Half an hour or so before serving, add the potatoes, peeled and quartered, and about ten minutes before serving add the sliced smoked sausage.

Káposztaleves
(Cabbage soup)

Ingredients: 6 ozs. of either lean pork or mutton, 2 lbs. of cabbage, 1 large onion, 2 or 3 tomatoes, ½ a pint of sour cream, 2 tablespoons of flour, 2 tablespoons of lard, 1 quart of water, 1 teaspoon of paprika, salt.

Method: Shred the onion and cabbage and put in a saucepan with a little hot fat. Mix well and add the meat, cut in cubes, the chopped tomatoes, and the seasoning of paprika and salt. Simmer gently for 30 minutes, but without allowing to brown. Then add the hot water gradually, cover, and simmer for 1 ½ hours, till the meat and cabbage are quite tender. Half an hour before serving, dilute the flour with a little of the sour cream and a few tablespoons of the hot stock, work into a smooth paste, and stir it into the soup. Finally stir in the remainder of the sour cream.

Burgonyaleves
(Potato soup)

Ingredients: 3 or 4 large potatoes, 1 medium sized onion, 3 tablespoons of sour cream, parsley, 1 pimiento, 1 quart of water or stock, parsley, salt, 1 tablespoon of paprika, lard.

Method: Melt about 1 tablespoon of lard in a saucepan and, when hot, add the chopped onion, the paprika or pimiento and the potatoes cut in small dice. Simmer gently without browning till the onions are of a light golden colour, and sprinkle with a little chopped parsley. Add the hot water, stir in the paprika, season with salt, bring to the boil and simmer for ½ an hour or till the potatoes are cooked. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the sour cream a few minutes before serving, and the remaining sour cream when the saucepan has been removed from the fire.

Fish

Rác Ponty
(Rác-carp)

Although carp is always used for this dish in Hungary, any sea or freshwater fish can be prepared and cooked in the same manner.

Ingredients: One large carp, larding bacon, 2 or 3 tomatoes, onions, parsnips, ½ pint of sour cream, ½ lb. of butter, 1 tablespoon of paprika, salt.

Method: Cut the larding bacon, the tomatoes, onions and parsnips into thin strips and, with a larding needle, lard the whole back of the fish with alternate rows of the larding bacon and the vegetables. Put the fish in a baking tin or in a fireproof dish, sprinkle freely with salt and paprika, pour the melted butter over it and place in a moderate oven till the fish is tender, basting frequently with the sour cream.

Halkocsonya
(Fish in aspic)

Ingredients: 2 lbs. of fish 2 or 3 large onions, 2 tablespoons of paprika, salt, 2 quarts of water.

Method: Cut the fish into 2 inch lengths and remove the bones. Put the fish, the bones and the finely chopped onions in a saucepan with the cold water, seasoning with the salt and paprika. Bring to the boil, and simmer till the fish is tender. Remove the pieces of fish carefully from the stock, put them in a basin or a dish and strain the stock over them. Put in a cold place till the stock has set in a jelly.

Rákpaprikás
(Crayfish or Dublin prawns with paprika)

The Norway lobster, or “Dublin” prawn as they are called in England, is very cheap and plentiful in most European countries, and this Hungarian recipe is very popular.

Ingredients: 2 dozen Dublin prawns, 4 tablespoons of tomato purée, 1 gill of sour cream, 1 heaped teaspoon of paprika, ½ lb. of butter, parsley, 1 teaspoon of cumin, salt.

Method: Boil the crayfish or Dublin prawns in salted water, flavoured with the cumin and parsley. When done, drain and remove the flesh from the tails and claws. Pound the shells to a paste in a mortar with 2 ozs. of butter, and rub through a sieve. Melt the remaining butter, mix with the

paste made with the shells, add the tomato purée, the paprika, and season with a little salt. Then add the flesh from the tails and claws of the crayfish, pounded in a mortar, and, just before serving, stir in the cream.

Plain boiled rice, dry and flaky, is usually served with this.

Entrees

Kolábszos Rántotta
(Scrambled eggs with sausages)

Ingredients: 6 eggs, ¼ lb. smoked sausages, 2 ozs. of unsalted or green bacon, 1 or 2 green pimientos, salt and pepper, butter.

Method: Cut the bacon, pimientos, and sausage in small dice and fry lightly in a little butter or fat. Break the eggs in a basin, mix well with a fork, season with salt and pepper, and add the cubes of bacon, sausage and pimientos. Melt a little butter in a deep frying pan, pour in the egg mixture, and stir continually with a wooden spoon till the consistency of thick cream, only just sufficiently set to hp eaten with a fork. Serve at once.

Paprikás-gomba
(Mushrooms with paprika)

Ingredients: ½ lb. of small mushrooms, 2 or 3 onions, 1 tablespoon of paprika, 2 tablespoons of sour cream, lard, salt, water.

Method: Chop the onions finely and evenly, and fry in a little lard till brown. Then add the mushrooms, carefully peeled, season with salt and paprika, and add sufficient warm water barely to cover the mushrooms. Cover the saucepan and simmer very gently till the mushrooms are tender and till the water has completely evaporated. Just before serving, stir in the sour cream.

Káposztáspalacsinta
(Cabbage pancakes)

This is made by adding 3 or 4 tablespoons of finely shredded cabbage, boiled, and then lightly fried or sauté in a little butter or fat, to a somewhat thin pancake batter. The pancakes are made in the usual way, and before folding are filled with a little chopped ham.

Töltött Burgonya
(Stuffed potatoes)

Ingredients: 8 large potatoes as nearly as possible of the same size, cooked minced pork, 2 or 3 tablespoons of cooked rice, a few smoked sausages, 2 or 3 onions, ½ pint of sour cream, 1 tablespoon of paprika, lard or fat, salt.

Method: Peel the potatoes and cut them in half lengthwise. With a small sharp knife remove the interior of the potato, leaving a thickness of about ⅛ of an inch. Stuff each half potato with the mixed minced pork and rice, cooked in a little butter, and well seasoned with salt and paprika. Slice the onions and mix with the pulp removed from the potatoes, and brown lightly in a little fat, with the sliced sausages. Place a layer of onions in a deep fireproof dish, over this put the potatoes and sausages, then the stuffed potatoes. Cover with a little hot water, sprinkle with paprika and bake in a moderate oven, adding the cream when the potatoes are nearly done.

Meat

Puszta Pörkölt
(Meat stew)

Ingredients: Equal parts of beef, veal and pork, 2 or 3 onions, 2 or 3 potatoes, lard or fat, salt and 1 teaspoon of paprika.

Method: Slice the onions and cook till a golden brown in hot lard or fat. Then add the meat, cut in inch lengths, season with salt and paprika. When the meat begins to brown, cover with hot water and simmer gently for hours. Twenty minutes or so before serving add the potatoes, cut in small cubes, and serve as soon as these are cooked.

Székelygulyás
(Szekely gullash)

Ingredients: 1 lb. of pork, 1 lb. of sauerkraut, 1 large onion, 1 gill of sour cream, lard, salt.

Method: Chop the onion, and cook in hot lard till a golden colour. Sprinkle with the paprika and mix well. Then add the meat, cut in small squares and simmer for a few minutes. Add a little water, and simmer till the water has evaporated. Repeat this process till the meat is quite tender. Add the previously boiled sauerkraut, mix well, and finally add the sour cream.

Borjúpaprikás
(Veal paprika)

Ingredients: 1 lb. of veal, 2 or 3 onions, 1 tablespoon of paprika, lard, 1 gill of sour cream, salt, water.

Method: The meat is cut in small squares and cooked exactly as in the preceding recipe, but without the sauerkraut.

Esterházy-Rostélyos
(Esterházy steaks)

Ingredients: Small steaks, taken from the loin, onions, carrots, parsnips, 1 gill of sour cream, 1 tablespoon of paprika, lard, salt.

Method: Put the sliced vegetables in a saucepan with the hot lard and, when they begin to brown, add the steaks (which should have been previously grilled for a few minutes), the paprika and the cream. Simmer till the steaks are tender and slightly underdone.

Erdélyi Tokány
(Transylvanian Tokiny)

This simple beef stew is very popular in Transylvania. The beef is cut into inch squares, put in a saucepan with a little lard and seasoned with salt and pepper. A few tablespoons of water are added, and the meat is simmered gently for about 1 hour till quite tender. A little more hot water is added from time to time in the process of cooking. About half an hour before the meat is ready, sliced onions are added and, when the onions are tender and the meat is slightly brown, the Tokany is ready.

Borjú Vagy Disznó Paprikásszelet
(Veal or pork chops with paprika sauce)

Ingredients: A few veal or pork cutlets, 2 rashers of bacon to each cutlet, ½ a pint of sour cream, 1 tablespoon of paprika, salt.

Method: Fry the rashers in a little melted butter and, when done, remove from the pan and keep warm in a very slow oven. Fry the cutlets to a nice golden colour in the bacon fat, add a little hot water and simmer till the cutlets are quite tender, seasoning with salt and paprika. Add the cream gradually, stirring till the sauce thickens. To serve, put some boiled rice in the centre of a dish and lay the slices of bacon over it. Arrange the cutlets around the dish and pour the sauce over them.

Poultry and Game

Pörköltcsirke
(Porkolt chicken)

Ingredients: 1 chicken, jointed, 2 or 3 tablespoons of tomato purée, 1 or 2 large onions, 2 or 5 pimientos, 1 tablespoon of paprika, salt, and a little water.

Method: Sprinkle the chicken, cut in neat joints, with salt and let stand for 2 or 5 hours. Fry the chopped onion in a little lard and, when slightly browned, mix in the tomato puree and season with salt and paprika. Then add the chicken, brown, add a little water, and simmer till the chicken is tender. Garnish with sliced and previously cooked pimientos.

Paprikásnyúl
(Hare with paprika)

Ingredients: Saddle of hare, 2 or 3 onions, 1 gill of sour cream, 1 tablespoon of paprika, lard or goose fat, salt, water.

Method: Chop the onions and cook in the hot fat to a golden colour, without browning. Then add the hare, cut in neat and somewhat thick slices, seasoning with salt and paprika, and adding a little hot water from time to time till the meat is quite tender. Then stir in the cream and, when well mixed, serve with flour or other dumplings.

Sundries

Rakott Burgonya
(A potato and egg dish)

This dish consists of sliced boiled potatoes placed in a well-buttered baking or fireproof dish with strips of ham over them, covered with a little sour cream, then a layer of sliced hard-boiled eggs, again covered with cream, a layer of boiled cauliflower, divided into clusters, and also covered with cream. The top layer should be potatoes and finally the dish is sprinkled with breadcrumbs, a little melted butter poured over the whole, and it is put in a moderate oven for 20 to 25 minutes till slightly browned.

Paprikásburgonya
(Potatoes with paprika)

Ingredients: 6 or 8 large potatoes, 2 or 3 onions, 1 gill of sour cream, 1 heaped teaspoon of paprika, salt, lard, or fat.

Method: Cook the finely chopped onions in the fat to a golden colour, but without browning. Mix in the paprika and add the potatoes, peeled and cut in small dice. Season with salt, and simmer gently, adding hot water from time to time till the potatoes are tender, but not too soft. Add the sour cream a few minutes before serving.

Tökfózelék
(Vegetable marrow with cream)

Ingredients: 1 or 2 young marrows, ½ pint of sour cream, 1 teaspoon of paprika, lard or fat, flour, salt.

Method: The marrow is peeled and cut into thin, narrow slices, freely sprinkled with salt and left for an hour or more to free it from water. Put a little lard or fat in a pan, and when hot add the paprika and the marrow, and cook without browning for 5 minutes. Stir in a little flour, then the cream, and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes.

Csipetke
(Very small flour dumplings)

These tiny dumplings which so often accompany various kinds of Gullash are made of a stiff paste consisting of 2 eggs to every 1 lb. of flour, kneaded with a little water and a good pinch of salt. The paste is rolled to the thickness of about ½ an inch, cut into ½ inch strips, and tiny pieces, of about the size of a bean, are pinched off with the fingers and shaped into balls. These are either boiled in salted water or cooked in the sauce of the dish with which they are served.

Liptauer Cheese

This famous cheese, which is extensively made in Germany and Austria, is of Hungarian origin. It is made from sour milk.

When the milk has soured and has become solidified, it is put in a muslin bag for 12 hours to drain. Work equal quantities of cream cheese and butter to a smooth paste. Add just under 1 oz. of finely chopped capers, 1 teaspoon of salt, 4 chopped anchovies, ½ a teaspoon of chopped onion, 1 small teaspoon of French or German mustard, teaspoons of paprika, a dash of pepper. Mix all the ingredients thoroughly, put in a mould to shape it, and decorate with capers and a sprinkling of paprika. About 2 ½ pints of milk will make sufficient cream cheese for 4 people.

Sweets

Boszorkányhab
(The witches’ froth)

Ingredients: 2 lbs. of apples, the whites of 2 or 5 eggs, 6 tablespoons of sugar, a little lemon juice, sliced fresh fruit and whipped cream.

Method: Bake the apples till very soft, remove the peel and the core, and rub the pulp through a sieve. When quite cold, add this pulp gradually to the whites of eggs, beaten to a very stiff snow, to which the sugar and lemon juice have been added. Put on a glass dish and garnish with slices of fresh fruit and whipped cream.

Mákostészta
(Poppy-seed cake)

Ingredients: 1 lb. of ground poppy seeds, ½ pint of fresh cream, 6 tablespoons of sugar, 1 strip of grated orange or lemon peel, 5 cups of flour, the yolks of 2 eggs, ¼ lb. of butter, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 2 cups of milk.

Method: Make a dough with the flour, baking powder, the yolks of eggs, the milk, and a little sugar. Beat well and let stand for ½ an hour. Roll out to about ½ an inch thick, cover with the poppy seeds, which have been well mixed with the cream, sugar and grated peel, and bake in a moderate oven.

Huszárrostélyos
(Hussar toast)

This savoury dish consists of slices of stale bread fried to a golden brown in goose fat, sprinkled with salt and well rubbed over with garlic. It is the Hungarian version of a dish popular in most European countries.

The National Hungarian Wine

The one wine of international interest and importance produced in Hungary is the famous Tokay, which was already held in high repute in the time of the Crusaders. It is produced chiefly in a mountainous region in the northeastern part of Hungary, of which the town of Tokay is the centre. The best Tokay is made from a species of vine called Formint, and the finest of the wines is the Tokay ausbruch. It is made from grapes which have been allowed to become over-ripe in the sun and which are gathered only when they are almost as shrivelled as raisins. These are blended with unscorched grapes. The Tokay essence, which is like a syrup and very highly prized, is produced by putting the finest grapes in casks and drawing off the sweet and sugary juice which exudes from them.

Tokay has a soft, almost oily taste, somewhat like a liqueur, and is highly aromatic and luscious.

Mr. F. Hedges Butler in his interesting book, Wine and the Wine Lands of the World, tells us that “The Imperial Tokay ausbruch (or ‘flowing forth’ of the syrup) was mostly kept for the use of the Austrian Emperor and a few of the nobles. From the reign of the Tsarina Catherine of Russia up till the year 1840 a Cossack detachment was stationed at Tokay to guard the wines purchased by the Russian Imperial Household.

Morphy, Countess. Recipes of All Nations. Herbert Joseph Limited, 1923.

Countess Morphy

Recipes of the World

A collection of delicious recipes from around the world. Please feel free to add your own family recipes here!

View Group