Brace yourself — this American Goulash recipe has been in my family for generations! Goulash has variations in many cultures, but they all center around bringing families together. My grandmother’s sacred recipe ticks all the must-have boxes for “hug-in-a-bowl” pasta recipes: thick tomato-sauce; zesty garlic; rich herbs; and as much cheese as I can stand.
I wouldn’t tease this tempting goulash recipe if it wasn’t quick to make and — best of all — a one-pot pasta recipe. You can have my grandmother’s American goulash with minimal clean-up. If that isn’t comforting, I don’t know what is.
Let’s get started!
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What I Love About American Goulash Recipe
My grandmother’s American goulash recipe is comfort food at its best:
- A crowd-pleasing one-pot pasta recipe
- It’s loaded with comfort food staples like pasta and cheese.
- Minimal clean-up!
Recipe Notes
American goulash is a forgiving dish, but you want to make sure you get the biggest comfort food bang out of your one-pot pasta recipe.
Ingredient Notes
Go for the dried herbs. Don’t let dried herbs scare you off. If you want your dish to have a bright burst of flavor, you use fresh herbs; but if you want a mellow, warm-and-cozy build of flavor, you use dried herbs.
What makes this goulash dish stand out from others are the Mediterranean-inspired spices — the bay leaves, oregano, and basil. If you don’t have all of those, you can swap in 1-2 tablespoons of good ol’, reliable Italian seasoning.
Herbs, Part Deux. My grandma was a master of balancing flavors, and one trick she loved was using seasoned salt. Seasoned salt is a great multi-purpose flavor enhancer, and its versatility is endless!
Sprinkle it on French fries, zest up roasted veggies, add a shake or two into sandwiches — it adds spices like paprika, turmeric, onion, and garlic, and even a sweet twist of sugar.
Watch your meat prep! I’m all for making this dish as easily as possible (we want comfort food, not stress food, after all!) If you’re using frozen beef then make sure you defrost your ground beef properly. If you can, try to thaw your beef in the fridge rather than in a water bath or on the counter.
Shredded versus block cheese. I am a bit of a cheese purist. Those bags of pre-shredded cheese available at the grocery store may look tempting and may save time, but there’s something so much creamier about freshly shredded cheese.
Obviously, there is NO judgment if you choose to use the pre-shredded cheese for convenience sake! To take this goulash pasta recipe over the top, I generally buy a block of cheddar cheese and hand shredding it to use for garnish.
Dietary adjustments. Need a gluten-free version? Grandma added a splash of soy sauce to her American goulash recipe to bring in that rounded umami flavor — to preserve that, you can substitute tamari, the Japanese version of soy sauce, and still end up with an umami-laced gluten-free bowl of YUM!
Then you can substitute the pasta for angel hair shredded cabbage-like in the recipe Low Carb Goulash by Lindsey at The Little Pine. I’ve tried her recipe and it’s actually, really delicious!
Storing Tips
You’ve cooked a pot of American goulash big enough to feed the whole block — so what do you do with the leftovers?
Can You Freeze This?
Yes! Well, sort of. Pasta is notoriously fickle in the freezer (say that five times fast), as the water content in the noodles can do funky things to the quality. And if you store the sauce on top of the pasta, the noodles will continue to absorb the liquid, making them softer and softer over time.
After freezing and thawing, this American goulash recipe will be a bit mushy, but that’s one of the beautiful things about comfort food — a little mushiness doesn’t stop it from tasting delicious!
But if you only enjoy firm, al dente pasta, it’s best to only freeze the sauce, and make the pasta fresh when you’re planning to indulge again.
As for the American goulash sauce, you can freeze that for up to four months!
Make Ahead Tips
Thankfully, this recipe is very “make-ahead” friendly. Much of the ingredients are canned and dried, which means they’ll be ready and waiting in your pantry whenever it’s time to get cooking.
As for the more sensitive parts: you can always cook the ground beef ahead of time, and just refrigerate it in an airtight container until you’re ready to make the full American goulash recipe (but don’t wait longer than two days!).
A great trick with the chopped onions is to dice up a bunch and store them in the fridge in airtight containers. You can prep this up to four days ahead of time.
How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge?
An airtight container in the fridge is the way to go if you’re planning to finish off this pasta recipe in one to two days — but if you’re wanting to store it longer, you’ll want to transfer it to the freezer.
Recipe Variations
Like I said, the world of goulash is endless! This hearty pasta recipe has been filling bellies across the globe for centuries. Here are just a few of the variations!
What Other Beefy Goulash I Can Try?
Beef, tomatoes, and cheese loaded onto carbs — am I describing this American goulash recipe, or am I describing the American classic, a hamburger?
Trick question — it’s both! But if you’re looking for a goulash recipe that screams BURGER, try our hamburger goulash recipe! You can always make instant pot goulash version too! Beef goulash goodness!
Can I Make This In Crockpot?
Yes! That’s the best part of comfort food — 9 times out of 10, you can dump all the ingredients in the Crockpot and let them come together without you. I actually have a delicious Crockpot Goulash recipe ready and waiting for you!
To transition this to Crockpot, brown the meat first in a skillet. Transfer to the Crockpot, and gradually add the sauce ingredients, stirring to combine. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 7-8 hours. While these ingredients are getting all simmered and delicious, whip up the pasta according to package directions.
When the American goulash is done, ladle it into a bowl of the pasta, and enjoy!
Can I Make This As Soup?
If you’re looking for a thinner take on the sauce, you can make this into goulash soup by adding a few cups of chicken broth (to your tastes!). Take it a step further by throwing in two chopped potatoes and letting them simmer in the brothy sauce. Soup perfection!
What Other Goulash Variations I Can Try?
The iconic recipe that springs to mind when most people hear the word “goulash” is the Hungarian goulash version. What makes that dish so unique is the addition of paprika.
Watch what paprika you add, though! There are many different kinds, each with their own flavor profiles, so go into the store knowing what sort of twist you’d like to add to your goulash recipe.
Do you want a husky, robust flavor? Then grab the smoky paprika. Do you want spicy sweetness? Pick up the sweet paprika. Don’t be afraid to try something new!
It is also common with in Hungary to add sour cream as the finishing touch, not cheese. Swap out your garnishes and get ready for your tastebuds to thank you!
German goulash uses chunky beef cuts and uses lesser veggies!
American Goulash
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Ground Beef 80/20
- 1 large yellow onion
- 4 large cloves garlic minced
- 3 cups water
- 2 (15-ounce ) canned tomato sauce
- 2 (14.5-ounce) canned diced tomatoes juice included
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon seasoned salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups elbow macaroni uncooked
- 2 cups cheddar shredded (optional)
Instructions
- In a large pot, brown the meat over medium heat, breaking up the meat as it cooks into small pieces. Continue to cook until the meat is cooked through and there's no longer any pink.
- Stir in the onions and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onions are translucent.
- Stir in water, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, soy sauce, oregano, basil, bay leaves, seasoned salt, and black pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the pasta, cover, and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally until the pasta is tender about 25 minutes. Remove from heat, discard bay leaves. To serve, ladle into individual bowls and top with cheddar.
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More One Pot Pasta Recipes
In this American goulash’s cheese and spices, the noodles and beef, let us not forget the most glorious of traits that this one pot pasta recipe offers: the ease of clean up! For more easy, breezy, belly-full one pot pasta dishes, check out:
- One Pot Mac And Cheese
- One Pot Chicken Alfredo
Conclusion
We thank you, American goulash recipe, for reminding us that even when life is hard, comfort food is easy.
How does comfort food improve your day? Comment below!
Great goulash recipe! I would say excellent except I’d use a little less oregano next time. It has strong taste of oregano. Also I used beef broth instead of water.
Thank you, Heather! I’ll try what you did too! 🙂
The BEST! One of the most requested meals in my home!
That’s amazing, Kathy! Thank you so much 🙂
My mother-in-law makes this on first night of vacation every year, she sent me the recipe, I loved it so much. My husband cooks this recipe in the fire house and all we have heard are raves of how good it is!! The leftovers are so good, if there is any! You will definitely be getting a second bowl. Best goulash recipe I have found. Made it many times. It always turns out great. I like using the fresh canned tomatoes from our garden throughout the year. So good. Thanks for sharing it.
Hi, Keely. Thank you too! I’m glad your family loved it as much as we do. Wow, you make your own canned tomatoes? That’s so cool! <3
Keely is my daughter-in-law! What a sweet compliment to both of us Thank-you for the recipe that has made me famous for any large crowd gathering we host or are invited to I often double the recipe,. Only change I make is to use favorite pasta sauce in place of tomato sauce. A perfect feast, loved by young and old and everyone in between. Thanks again!
Hi, Betsy! Thank you for your feedback! Maybe you need an extra extra extra batch next time? Hehehe. I’m gonna try pasta sauce too! 🙂
Great one pot recipe! The only thing my Mom did differently was to use worchestershire sauce and add kidney beans. Family and kid favorite, love the leftovers. I used 2 cans Rotel diced tomatoes and mild green chiles since I didn’t have any diced tomatoes on hand. Thanks for all your great recipes….I have 8 to feed most of the time and need to stretch the food $$$$.
Hi, GrannieB! I’m happy you like it! Goulash recipes are so tweakable, right?! I like that it’s budget-friendly too. Thank you for your feedback 🙂
This was ABSOLUTELY wonderful! Unfortunately, after making it, I learned that Hunts Tomato Sauce is known for being EXTREMELY acidic! The goulash would have been soooooo i(much better had I not made this mistake. No Hunts in my pantry ever again!
I did add green pepper and not the bay leaves because I had none. They are now in my grocery list. I also used unsalted beef broth instead of water. I WILL be making this again. 5+ out of 5 stars if I could!!!
Way to go, Colleen! 😀
I’m sure this is an amazing recipe, but I have to stick with my tried and true recipe.
I have never made goulash without green peppers and I don’t use any cheese in mine either.
Here’s my recipe:
Ground beef
Elbow macaroni
Onion
Green pepper
Fire roasted diced tomatoes
Katchup
Chili sauce
Worcestershire sauce
Dried red pepper flakes to taste
Black pepper
These are the only ingredients I put into my goulash and I never skip or add anything else..
It turns out fantastic every time.
Ooooh that’s fantastic, Linda! 💗 Thank you so much for sharing your recipe!
This is wonderful. I cooked the elbow macaroni separate so that it was al dente. My company raved about it. I served it with Five Cheese Texas Toast for dipping. Absolutely delicious. I also used fresh oregano and bay leaves. This is definitely a new staple that I will cook often.
❤️ So stoked to hear everyone loved it! Keep it up, Cindy!
This is a flavorful recipe. The only things that I personally feel that should be scaled back a touch are salt and pasta. When the elbows swell from cooking, it makes the dish thick. My preference is a bit thinner sauce. Other than those two easy fixes, I will definitely make it again.
I have been making this since I found this receipe back in 2015. I have some simmering on the stove as I type. Tomorrow we are supposed to have a bunch of snow here in Michigan. I’ll have a big ole bowl of this tomorrow while looking out the window at the snow falling. Have some buttered bread with sugar sprinkled on top. mmmmm. Thanks Kathleen, I still want to trade you in for my wife, cooking wise. 😀
I’m so happy you’ve been enjoying this goulash since 2015! That makes my day. 🙂
this recipe is delicious! made it a few weeks ago….making it again today, and plan on making it for company next week..it’s that good !
Wow, that’s great, Karen! So happy to hear you loved it!
Been making this for years it’s just beef casserole!!!
Excellent recipe. Reminds me of the days when I was younger at home. I’ve made this twice. The first time The pasta was mushy. Second time I cooked the recipe and the pasta separately, waiting for both to cool, and then mix them together. That seem to work. I omitted the water since it was not needed because the pasta wasn’t cooking with the recipe. Great comfort food. Thanks
You’re welcome, Paul! 😃 I sometimes cook the pasta separately too.
I stayed with the complete recipe and it was fantastic, rather a snap to prepare and cook…right to serving.
My guest loved it and I gave up the recipe.
The Roll Up Lasagna is next.
This is similar to a recipe I use but i grate my onions and garlic and add diced red and green bell peppers and a couple of squirts of tomato paste, then add meat and diced tomatoes and tomato juice. Where i really make a left turn is with my seasonings, I use salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar and paprika. Don’t really measure just dash stir until it smells right then taste and tweak. I serve with bowls of sour cream, shredded cheese and chopped chives. Never forget a loaf of crusty bread.
I have been looking for years for a goulash recipe that read similar to what my mom made in the 1960’s but none of the recipes ingredients looked quite right to me. Your recipe sounds and looks spot on other than I doubt my mother used soy sauce. I’m going to make it with and without the soy sauce to see which I like better. I also a previous review that said they added celery and that sounds like something my mom would have done also. So excited to try this!!!
That sounds awesome Craig! So glad you want to make this! Let us know how it turns out 😀
I’m wondering what brand of seasoned salt works best? Lawry’s, or do you use something different? They all seem to vary in terms of ingredients. Making this soon, and want to get it just right!
Hi Suzanne!
Yes, they all vary in terms of ingredients. I use Lawry’s most often but others will work just fine. I hope you enjoy!