Spoonful of Sugar Free

Registered Dietitian

Mush Tastes Good

By

This is one of my favorite recipes that my whole family enjoys. The inspiration for this came from my Grandma who made the best goulash. I remember sitting in her little kitchen and taking big helpings of this delightful tomato, beef, noodle mix from her yellow French Oven Le Creuset. Straight up comfort food.

Grandma’s Goulash-Healthified

~This goulash is gluten-free, dairy-free, yeast-free, nut-free, and, of course, sugar-free! 

Ingredients

  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 cup gluten-free elbow noodles. (I use Tinkyada brown rice noodles-they are my favorite! I they taste just like the real thing, and they are well-priced, too.)
  • 2 cups diced tomatoes (I use canned)
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 carrots, 2 zucchini both chopped
  • 2 15 oz. cans of beans of choice. (This time I used garbanzo and kidney beans)
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • Spices: 1 teaspoon oregano, 1 teaspoon paprika, salt and pepper to taste
***NOTE: You can change the recipe however you like. Feel free to add any other veggies lurking in your kitchen. If you are vegan, you can omit the ground beef and just use the beans.
In a skillet, cook the ground beef with the chopped onion on medium heat. In the meantime, cook the elbow noodles according to the package. In a large saucepan, mix the cooked noodles, chopped vegetables, beans, and spices, and then add the beef-onion mix. Simmer for 20 minutes on medium-low heat until the carrots are soft.
I’m sorry, but it is hard to get goulash to look pretty. You are just going to have to trust me when I say this mush tastes GOOD! So please try it.
I hope you find it as nourishing and comforting as I do.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

Is there a dish you remember eating as a kid that made you feel like you were home? A comfort food that you will always remember?

In addition to goulash, my grandma made the best deviled eggs! They were amazing, and I requested that she make some for all my birthdays.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. yum yum love all the colors in that dish! I have a few childhood foods that remind of things like our mom’s banana bread and spinach quiche were classics!

  3. I don´t eat meat but I did, I would eat this all:) Now that is a much healthier goulash than our typical Czech goulash full of white flour, oil and fatty meat!

  4. This looks so similar to one of my husband’s old favorites and calls it GOOP! His grandma was Hungarian… thanks for sharing.

  7. I made a mini version of your puppy cake 🙂 Nina LOVED it!! Thanks girl!
    And this ghoulash is surely bomb. My grandma makes very comforting mashed potatoes with gravy. Soo good.

  9. Reminds me of American Chop Suey – only healthier, of course! Can’t wait to try it.

    As a kid, I used to adore “breakfast-at-dinner” nights. My dad made a good fritata and breakfast is just yummy in general!

  11. This meal looks so warm and comforting. For me a simple dish is rice and eggs. My family has it all the time 🙂

  12. mmm, I actually do think it looks delish, haha! It’s been way too long since I’ve made that…I love it. It’s so easy to change things up and use whatever you have on hand, too. Thanks for the reminder!

  14. ok i can’t believe I am about to say this… I hated goulash as a kid, but the healthified verision you just posted looks awesome and I happen to have all the ingredients!

  15. My mom made a lot of casseroles I absolutely hated. We moved a lot [21 houses in 17 years] so she was always cooking a HUGE batch of food for the next move and we would live on it for 2 months while we unpacked and got settled. So, needless to say I got sick of everything! Lasagna sticks out as the most predominant. Ahhh!!!

  18. This is great! Thank goodness for grandmas who share. This is my first visit to your site and I’ve spent some time browsing through your earlier entries. I really like the food and recipes you feature here and I’ll definitely be back. hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary

  21. Thanks for another suggestion for my vegan honey! Will try it only omit the beef and add in some soy burgers, crumbled into the final goulash! I think he’ll be pleasantly surprised!

    Now, could you think of a way to make a (Chicken) pot pie that’s Vegan?

  22. I’m going to try this tonight using Morningstar Meal Starters Crumbles. I use the crumbles for all my ground beef recipes now and my 13 year old son loves it. In fact he had ground beef at a friend’s house and had trouble swallowing it!!
    Thanks for the recipes, I’m going to try working my way through them.

  23. Just tried this recipe, eating it right now mmm so tasty and so easy to make. I have tried different Hungarian goulash recipes in the past but they were more complicated and time consuming however always really good. Glad I have found this one, making more again! 🙂