• Remove the meat from the fridge at least one hour before cooking to allow it to acclimatize to room temperature. This step is essential to ensure even cooking. Never fry cold meat directly in hot oil, as it will cool the oil and the bottom of the pan. This can cause excess meat juices to escape, potentially leading to dry meat. If needed, cut the meat into cubes about 2–3 cm in size for even cooking and easier handling.
  1 lb stewing beef
• Peel the onions and roughly chop them. Peel and slice the garlic finely.
  3 onions, 1 garlic clove
• In a large saucepan, heat half the oil over high heat. Add the meat and sear it until browned on all sides to develop a rich roasting flavor. If you have a large quantity of meat, fry it in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan. Overcrowding will cause the meat to release too much juice and cook rather than sear. Once browned, remove the meat from the pan and set it aside.
  4 tablespoon neutral oil
• Pour the remaining oil into the pan. Add the onions and fry them over medium heat until they are golden brown. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute, stirring frequently to avoid burning.
• Stir in the tomato paste and cook it for about a minute. This step enhances the flavor and gives the stew a lovely brown color. Then return the beef to the pan.
  2 tablespoon tomato paste
• Pour in the red wine to deglaze the pan, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom for extra flavor. Let the wine simmer until it has reduced by about two-thirds
  ¾ Cups dry red wine
• Stir in the paprika powder (both sweet and spicy), marjoram (affiliate link), bay leaves, and lemon zest. Pour in the beef broth. Season with salt and pepper.
  2 Cups beef broth, 1 teaspoon majoram, 1 tablespoon sweet paprika powder , 1 teaspoon spicy paprika powder, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, 2 bay leafs, salt and pepper
• Cover the saucepan with a lid and simmer the goulash for about 90 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the bottom from burning.
• After 60 minutes, check the consistency. If the stew is too liquid, remove the lid for the last 30 minutes to allow it to reduce. You can also thicken the stew by mixing 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with water and adding it to the stew.
  2 tablespoon cornflour/starch

To cook in a slow cooker / crockpot

• Follow the instructions to cook the goulash in a saucepan until step 5. 
• Pour the cooked ingredients into your slow cooker/ crockpot and add the beef stock/ beef broth. Pour in the wine.
• Cook in the slow cooker  for around 5-6 hours until the meat falls off the fork Remove the lid, if necessary for the last hour to thicken the stew. If it is still to liquidly, stir in 1 tablespoon of corn flour / corn starch and bring to a boil.

Make in a pressure cooker

• Follow the instructions to cook the goulash in a saucepan until step 7. 
• Add the lid to the pressure cooker and cook at high pressure for 45 minutes. 
• Once the lid is removed, mix in a tablespoon of cornstarch/cornflour to thicken up the sauce. Bring the goulash back to boil with the lid removed to thicken the sauce. Should the sauce still be too thin, add an additional tablespoon of cornflour until the desired consistency is achieved.