Pork Goulash (Another Winter Meal)

When I lived in Heidelberg I was very young but I have some indelible memories nonetheless. American Army officers were expected to hire maids, apparently as part of the Marshall Plan. We lived in a small apartment and a maid was superfluous to requirements but we still followed orders and a succession of young women came to work under my mother's exacting requirements. I don't know if it was that or whether the very situation meant that the maids never lasted that long, but one young woman was deemed trustworthy enough to watch all four children when my parents took a trip to Paris. My mother had purchased food for the weekend and left the maid in charge of the cooking, something she had not done for us before. She made goulash, but because of the difference in language between American English and German, she used cayenne pepper instead of Hungarian paprika in the goulash. I still remember how hot it was and how upset she was that we ate so slowly.

Well, I still like goulash. Earlier in the year my husband and I went to Istanbul. The only items we brought back and the only items our sons requested were spices from the spice market. One of the spices I picked out was a smoked paprika, unlike Spanish smoked paprika in color and flavor. You won't be able to duplicate my goulash with this recipe unless you too have Turkish smoked paprika ( a deep purple in  color and both smoky and mildly hot in flavor), but you can make a close approximation with Spanish smoked paprika.

1/2 to 3/4 pound of pork stew meat or boneless pork ribs cut into one inch cubes (If you have some reason to avoid pork, other meats can be used including veal, beef, chicken, or even turkey chunks.)
1 yellow onion sliced lengthwise and then crosswise
1/4 head of green cabbage sliced thin
Either some fresh tomatoes quartered or a small can of diced tomatoes
1/2 cup or to taste of sauerkraut, drained and rinsed
1 garlic clove crushed or diced
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
1.5 to 2 cups of beef broth
about a half cup sour cream

In a large sauce pan brown the pork cubes in a little butter with some salt and pepper. Remove from pan and add onions. Cook until soft, about five minutes, then add the cabbage, the tomatoes, the sauerkraut and the garlic. Cook until the cabbage wilts then add the pork back in the pan. Sprinkle paprika over everything and stir to coat and combine. Add the beef broth and simmer for about 45 minutes. At this point it can be turned off until about fifteen minutes before serving. Bring back to a simmer and test for salt and pepper. Add the sour cream and stir until combined. This should be reasonably thick but if it isn't you can thicken it with a roux made with melted butter and flour. Serve over egg noodles.