Recipe: Hetvezer Tokany (Seven Chieftains Tokany) and Soft Dumplings (Galuska)

HETVEZER TOKANY
Source: The Hungarian Cookbook, 1972

Seven Chieftains Tokany (Het Vezer Tokany (Hayt ve-zayr to-kahny)(according to legend each of the seven tribes of Hungary contributed one of the ingredients) Each element is to bring out the noble qualities of the others while retaining its own identity.
1/4 pound smoked bacon (slab bacon is preferable, but thick-sliced breakfast bacon may be used)
1 pound lean beef, preferable top round or flank steak
3/4 pound shoulder of pork
3/4 pound shoulder of veal
1 cup finely chopped onions
Additional bacon fat or cooking oil
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon marjoram
1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds, crushed with the back of a spoon
About 3/4 cup cooking oil
1 medium green pepper, cored and cut in 1/2-inch strips
3 medium peeled tomatoes, preferably canned
1 cup beef stock, canned beef broth, or water
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
Galuska (Dumplings) - recipe to follow

Cut the bacon, beef, pork, and veal into strips about 2 inches by 1/4 inch by 1/4 inch, making four separate piles.

In a 3-quart heavy-bottomed casserole, fry the bacon until golden but not crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer he bacon to a side dish.

Fry the onions in the same pan until they wilt, adding more fat or oil if needed.

Stir in the paprika, salt, marjoram, caraway seeds, and 1/2 cup of water. Cover and simmer 2 minutes.

Heat 1/4 cup of cooking oil in a heavy skillet and start browning the beef strips a handful at a time. More oil may be needed to brown them all.

Scrape the meat and juices into the casserole, cover, and simmer, stirring from time to time. Add more water as necessary to keep the sauce from cooking away.

Next, brown the pork strips in the skillet, using another 1/4 cup of oil.

When the beef has cooked 1 hour, mix in the browned pork and lay the green pepper strips and tomatoes on top. Cover and continue simmering.

Then brown the veal strips in the skillet, using the last 1/4 cup of oil, and 30 minutes after adding the pork, mix the browned veal into the stew.

Cover and simmer another 30 minutes. Taste a piece of each kind of meat to see if it is tender. If not, cook another 10 minutes or until the meat is done. Remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes.

Tilt the pot and skim off as much grease as possible. Slowly pour in the beef stock or water and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the bacon strips and let the tokany stand until lukewarm.

Beat the sour cream lightly with a fork, mix 2 tablespoon of sauce into the sour cream, then stir it into the stew. Taste and add more salt if the sauce seems flat.

Just before serving, slowly reheat the tokany and let it simmer 2 or 3 minutes. the tokany may be brought to the table in the cooking pot or a covered bowl.

To serve, place a generous amount of galuska on each dinner plate and spoon the tokany over them.

Soft Dumplings (GALUSKA) (gah-loos-kah)

Of all the recipes, I would say if you can't cook galuska, you can't cook Hungarian. Without galuska, csirke paprikas (chicken paprikash) might as well be another country's chicken recipe. The following recipe will serve six generously; for experiments and soups, stick to one cup of flour/one egg proportions.

3 cups sifted all-purpose flour OR 2 1/2 cups granular (instant-blending) flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 eggs
2 tablespoons butter or oil

Mix the flour and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Make a well, add the eggs, and beat with a wooden spoon. Add as much cold water as necessary (about 1/2 cup) to hold the dough together. Beat vigorously until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl and starts to blister on the surface. Let the dough rest for at least 45 minutes.

Turn it out on a wet breadboard and, using a knife or the edge of a soup spoon, cut off irregular pieces about 1/2 inch long and the thickness of a pencil.

Drop the pieces into a large pot of rapidly boiling water. You can also force the dough through a Spatzle machine or a chestnut roaster directly into the water. Galuska are done seconds after they rise to the surface. Skim them off the top of the water with a slotted spoon or drain in a colander.

Turn the galuska into a bowl, add the butter or oil, and serve.