Crock Pot Goulash

You are thinking one of two things: 

1. What the heck is Goulash 
2. Awe! My grandmother use to cook Goulash!

Ok, I am sure that the majority of you are asking what Goulash is, and if you are anything like the girls I work with, you may also think it looks disgusting. I believe one comment was- "Did you just throw everything that you have in your fridge into your crock pot?".  Uhm, no! This was a purely thought out recipe that I was really excited to try in my slow cooker!

When I was little, my Nana always made Goulash. Now my Nana was not the best cook in the world, but what she was lacking in cooking skills, she made up for it in attention and love. If I think back to being a kid and visiting their house there were always a few constants:

1. A garage refrigerator full or RC cola and Budweiser Beer
2. Chips Ahoy Chocolate Chip cookies 
3. Grilled steaks and Potatoes every Saturday night
4. Goulash- Nana's Best Dish

Shortly after marrying my husband, I made a pot of Goulash. He was a little skeptical, but he was hooked. If you have never heard of or tried Goulash, please give it a chance! You really can not mess this recipe up.(Unless you add cinnamon by mistake-which my Nana once did!) You can add or omit different vegetable and spices. If you want it spicy add cayenne pepper and chili powder. If you want a fresh taste, stick with fresh herbs or italian seasoning. I saw a vegan version that added green beans. 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs of ground beef (or Turkey or no meat at all)

2 cans of Italian diced tomatoes

1 can of tomato sauce 

1-2 peppers

1/2 bag frozen corn

1 box of elbow macaroni 

Seasoning as you prefer - I used italian seasoning. 

I went ahead and cooked my ground beef before preparing the freezer bag. Im sure that it would have been fine, but I needed to brown the meat for another recipe so I just went ahead and browned the 3 lb package that I bought at the store. Add the canned goods, 1/2 bag of frozen corn and chopped peppers to a freezer bag. Once your ground meat has cooled add it to the freezer bag and you are done, I defrosted the bag the night before and cooked it on low for 4 hours. Since the meat was already cooked I just wanted to warm everything. I cooked my macaroni separately and added it to the Goulash because I prefer my pasta al dente and not mushy. (I also have a picky kid that eats pasta plain and thinks it is the most delicious thing in the world.)

Not only did this recipe cost about $8 total it also made a TON of food. You can always eat as left overs or refreeze for another time. 

Hope you give this meal a chance! Some of the weirdest looking things taste the best! Make sure to wash it down with a can of RC cola (or Budweiser) and finish it off with a Chips Ahoy cookie in memory of the sweetest Nana a girl could ask for!

Recipe name

Number of servings

Serves  people

Ingredients	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
Beef - Ground, 95% lean meat / 5% fat, patty, cooked, broiled (hamburger), 1.5 serving ( 3 oz )	227	0	9	34	83	0
Kroger - Peeled Tomatoes Diced Italian Style, 2 container (1 4/5 cup (121g) ea.)	210	35	0	7	2,310	28
Hunt's - Tomato Sauce - Basil, Garlic and Oregano (Net Carbs), 1 container (9/10 cup (62g) ea.)	70	14	0	4	1,260	7
Peppers - Sweet, green, raw, 2 cup, chopped	60	14	1	3	9	7
Corn - Frozen Veggie Values Corn, 0.5 container (1 4/5 cups ea.)	123	30	2	5	18	9
Kroger Value Brand - Boiled Elbow Macaroni, 0.75 of package	1,200	246	6	42	0	12
Add Ingredient

Total:	1,890	339	18	95	3,680	63
Per Serving:	236	42	2	12	460	8