Beef & Bean Goulash

This beef and bean goulash is a fantastic tomato based stew. Beef, cannellini beans, mushrooms and peppers are combined and simmered gently with paprika and cayenne to give a warm smoky flavour. Potatoes are added towards the end of the cooking to bring the stew together and thicken it slightly.

Great served on it's own or with some crusty bread, you could also serve the stew with rice to make it go a bit further.

The following recipe gives two generous portions if served alone, or four if served with rice.

Ingredients

• 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes

• 2 teaspoons of tomato puree

• Half a pint of boiling water

• 2 sweeteners

• 1 beef stock cube, crumbled

• 1 vegetable stock cube, crumbled

• 100g dried cannellini beans. Left to soak overnight, then drained

• 1 teaspoon of cayenne

• 1 teaspoon of paprika

• a dash of worcestershire sauce

• 4 sprays of Fry Light One Cal Spray Oil

• 400g beef. Stewing beef is best. Trimmed of all visible fat and cubed

• 150g mushrooms. Washed/wiped and quartered

• 1 green pepper, washed and sliced

• 1 red (or yellow) pepper, washed and sliced

• 5g / 1 teaspoon of low fat butter spread

• 1 teaspoon of caraway seeds

• 1 medium onion. (Red or white). Peeled and finely sliced

• 2 cloves of garlic. Peeled and finely chopped

• 300g-400g potatoes. Washed/scrubbed and sliced into roughly equal sized wedges

• Salt to taste

• A good twist of black pepper

• 1 x 125g tub of 0% fat, plain natural yoghurt
• fresh or dried parsley for garnish

Method

1. Add the tinned chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, stock cubes, boiling water and sweeteners to a large pot. Turn the heat to a high heat and bring the pot to a boil. Once it’s boiled, reduce the heat to medium and add the cayenne, paprika and worcestershire sauce and stir in.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan on a high heat and add 2 sprays of oil. Add half the beef and fry for 3-5 minutes until browned. Transfer the beef to the simmering sauce.
3. Then, add the second 2 sprays of oil and fry the rest of the beef until browned. Again, transfer to the sauce when browned.
4. Reduce the heat under the pan to medium and add the mushrooms and fry for 5 minutes until browned. The mushrooms should clear any residue left by the beef. Add the mushrooms to the simmering sauce.
5. Next, add the sliced peppers and fry gently for 5-8 minutes until lightly browned. You should lightly season the peppers with salt and pepper. Transfer the peppers to the tomato sauce.
6. Finally, add the butter spread to the pan and, when bubbling, add the caraway seeds and stir them for a minute, then add the onions. Stir gently for 3-5 minutes, until lightly coloured. Then add the garlic and continue to fry for a further minute. Add the onion and garlic mixture to the tomato sauce also. You can add a splash of boiling water to dissolve any residue left in the pan. Add this to the tomato sauce also.
7. Stir the tomato sauce gently to make sure all the additional ingredients are combined. Bring the pot back to the boil and let it bubble for a minute or so.
8. Reduce the heat to low/medium and partially cover the pot with a lid and leave to simmer for approximately 1 and half hours. Stir the pot every 30 minutes or so to ensure the sauce is not sticking to the bottom of the pot.
9. Finally, add the sliced potatoes and simmer for a further 20 minutes until the potatoes are cooked. You might need to add a little more water if the sauce has thickened a lot.
10. Check the seasoning and add some salt and pepper as needed. Check the potato is fully cooked by tasting. 
11. Divide into two portions and serve with 0% fat natural yoghurt and garnish with the parsley.