Szegediner goulash with sauerkraut and sour cream

Pat the pork shoulder dry, remove thick membranes and cut into cubes about 3 cm across, leaving the usual fat marbling. Taste the sauerkraut: if it is very sour or salty, briefly rinse it in a sieve under cold water. Drain, squeeze lightly and only then weigh out 600 g; do not use the brine or rinse water. Cut through long strands of sauerkraut a few times. Finely chop the onion and crush the garlic.

Heat 10 g lard over a medium-high heat in a wide heavy-bottomed pot with a capacity of about 4 l. Add half the meat in one layer and brown for 5–6 minutes, turning occasionally. Transfer to a plate and fry the other half in the same way with another 10 g lard. Season all the meat with 2 g salt. Keep the fat and browned fond in the pot and all the juices on the plate.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the remaining 10 g lard and the onion. Fry for 7–8 minutes, stirring, until the onion softens and becomes lightly golden. Add the garlic and caraway and stir for about 30 seconds. Remove the pot from the heat, add the ground paprika, stir briefly and immediately pour in some of the initial 500 ml water. The paprika should blend into the fat but must not burn. Scrape the browned fond from the bottom with a spatula.

Return the meat with all its juices to the pot, add the bay leaves and pepper and the rest of the initial 500 ml water. The liquid should reach roughly three quarters of the way up the meat. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover and braise over a low heat for about 60–75 minutes, stirring occasionally. The meat should have softened noticeably while still holding its shape. If the sauce evaporates too much, add small amounts of the reserve water.

Add the prepared sauerkraut, mix well and braise with the lid on for another 35–45 minutes. Stir from the bottom occasionally; the sauce should remain at the bottom of the pot, not cover all the sauerkraut. Add a little reserve water if needed. Near the end, the meat should yield easily to a fork and the sauerkraut should be tender. If the meat still resists, braise for about another 15 minutes. If there is too much liquid, remove the lid for the last 5–10 minutes for a thick yet juicy goulash.

Remove the bay leaves and turn the heat to its lowest setting. Put 160 g sour cream in a bowl, add 2–3 tablespoons of hot sauce from the pot and mix thoroughly, then add another 2–3 tablespoons of sauce. Pour the warmed sour cream into the goulash, stirring gently. Warm for about 2 minutes without bringing it to a boil, to reduce the risk of curdling. Taste and add the remaining salt if needed, no more than 2 g.

Divide all the goulash and sauce into four portions. Top each with about 10 g of the reserved 40 g sour cream and serve hot. The sauerkraut should be tender, the meat soft and the sauce smooth, flavored with paprika and sour cream and pleasantly tangy.