Bohrach (бограч, Transcarpathian goulash)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A 6 to 8 litre cauldron or heavy modern stockpot
• •A long wooden spoon
• •A sharp knife for chunky vegetables
• •A small bowl for mixing optional pinched dumplings

Instructions

1. 1

   Render the bacon

   Set a 6 to 8 litre cauldron or heavy pot over a medium fire or hob. Add the diced bacon and let it render until the fat runs clear and the edges turn mahogany; add the sunflower oil or lard only if the pot looks dry. You want a shallow red-gold lake for the onions, not black bits at the bottom.

2. 2

   Bloom the paprika

   Add the onions with a good pinch of salt and cook until they slump, shine, and turn translucent. Stir in the garlic, caraway, and tomato paste, then pull the pot away from the fiercest heat before the sweet paprika goes in. Stir for half a minute, just until the fat flashes brick-red and smells sweet instead of dusty, then move straight to the meat.

   Paprika is the step that doesn't forgive. Fat wakes it up; fierce heat burns it bitter. If your paprika smells like cupboard dust before it meets the pot, buy a fresher packet.
3. 3

   Coat the meat

   Add the beef and pork, if using, and turn every piece through the red onion fat. Let the meat tighten and darken at the edges until the wet hiss changes into a frying sound. Season with the salt and black pepper. This is where the pot begins to smell like supper instead of ingredients.

4. 4

   Simmer the meat

   Add the tomatoes, peppers, bay leaves, wine if using, and enough stock or water to cover the meat by two fingers. Bring it to a lively bubble, then calm it down to a steady murmur and cook partly covered until a piece of beef yields when pressed against the side of the pot with a spoon. Skim grey foam if it appears, but leave the red fat alone. That fat is flavor you can see.

   Outdoors, raise or lower the cauldron to control the heat. Indoors, keep it at a gentle simmer. A hard boil makes the meat stubborn and muddies the broth.
5. 5

   Add the roots

   Add the carrots and potatoes, plus a little more liquid if the pot has tightened too much. Simmer until the potatoes are tender and their edges begin to roughen, then crush a few pieces against the side of the pot to thicken the broth. Bohrach should drag slowly behind the spoon and sound heavy, not watery.

6. 6

   Pinch the dumplings

   If you want the pinched dumplings, beat the egg with a pinch of salt and stir in the flour to make a stiff, tacky dough. Wet your fingers and pinch hazelnut-size pieces straight into the bubbling pot when the potatoes are nearly done. They are ready when they float and lose the raw white centre, but don't crowd the pot; the potatoes have already done most of the thickening.

7. 7

   Rest and finish

   Turn off the heat and taste for salt, heat, and sweetness. Add a little hot paprika if it needs a kick, a splash of water if it has gone too thick, and most of the dill right at the end. Cover and let it sit for the time it takes to set bowls and tear bread. Serve with the remaining dill, good bread, and smetana if you want it. The spoon should stand up straight, or at least lean there with confidence.

   Hold back the dill until the end, especially if you make the pot ahead. Fresh dill wakes the whole thing after a night in the fridge.

Chef Tips

• •Use sweet paprika that smells alive before it touches the pan. Transcarpathian cooks often reach for Hungarian paprika because the border has always been a pantry, but any fresh sweet paprika with real color will feed you well.
• •A hanging cauldron gives the pot its outdoor character, but a heavy stockpot works in a flat in London. The step that matters is moving the pot away from fierce heat when the paprika goes in.
• •Mixed meat is normal in many Zakarpattia households: beef for depth, pork or smoked ribs for sweetness and smoke. All beef makes a cleaner, bit more modern pot, still worth feeding people.
• •In August use fresh peppers and tomatoes. In January use jarred tomatoes or a spoon of pepper paste; opening a jar is not defeat, it's how winter kitchens survive.
• •Leftovers thicken overnight. Add a splash of water as it reheats and finish with fresh dill; if you used dumplings, expect them to swell.

Advance Preparation

• •Cube the meat and chop the vegetables up to a day ahead; keep them covered and chilled.
• •For the best make-ahead version, cook through the meat-simmering stage a day ahead, then finish with potatoes and dumplings before serving.
• •A fully cooked pot keeps for 3 days in the fridge and tastes rounder the next day. Add fresh dill only after reheating.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 600g)