Hungarian goulash

Heat up the oil or lard in a pot and braise the chopped onions in it until they get a nice golden brown colour

Sprinkle the braised onions with paprika powder while strirring them to prevent the paprika from burning.

Add the beef cubes and and sautee them till they turn white and get a bit of brownish colour as well.

The meat will probably let out its own juice, let the beef-cubes simmer in it while adding the grated or crushed and chopped garlic (grated garlic has stronger flavour), the ground caraway seed, some salt and ground black pepper, the bayleaf, pour water enough to cover the content of the pan and let it simmer on low heat for a while.

When the meat is half-cooked (approx. in 1,5 hour, but it can take longer depending on the type and quality of the beef) add the diced carrots and the potatoes, the cellery leaf and some more salt if necessary (vegetables tend to call for more salt). You'll probably have to add some more (2-3 cups) water too.

When the vegetables and the meat are almost done add the tomatoe cubes and the sliced green peppers. Let it cook on low heat for another few minutes. You can remove the lid of the pan if you want the soup to thicken.

Hungarian goulash is neither a soup nor a stew, its somewhere in between. Though in Hungary its considered rather to be a soup than a stew.

The soup is hearty enough without any pasta just serve with some fresh bread