Goulash soup

Hearty Goulash Soup with Beef and Bell Peppers

The Goulash Soup from Manufaktur U is a thick beef soup with diced potatoes, bell peppers, and a splash of red wine, cooked according to the Hungarian tradition. This is not off-the-shelf canned goulash, but a ready-to-serve soup from a small, carefully selected artisanal producer.

Goulash soup at Manufaktur U stands for a robust, thick soup based on the Hungarian tradition: tender beef, fine potato cubes, and pieces of bell pepper are cooked together in a spicy broth with a splash of red wine. The Hungarian word "gulyás" originally meant cattle herder—which is why this dish was originally made with pure beef, completely without pork.

Robustly seasoned with a subtle note of bell pepper

As soon as you open the can, a spicy aroma of bell peppers and braised beef rises, along with a rich reddish-brown color that comes from real paprika powder, not just food coloring. For over 150 years, this spice has been a staple in Hungarian cuisine, long before it found its way into German kitchens.

The beef is tender enough to fall apart almost without a knife, while the potato cubes provide substance and the bell pepper pieces add a slightly sweet contrast. Spicy, thick, hearty—this soup warms you from the inside out, with a heat that only emerges in the aftertaste, never obtrusively on the front of the tongue.

If you serve it at around 80 degrees Celsius, the red wine in the broth unfolds its full depth, and you can taste why goulash soup was originally the meal of Hungarian cattle herders—hearty enough for a long day of work in the pasture.

Hearty fare on the table in just a few minutes

The contents of the can are poured into a pot and heated for a good 5 minutes while stirring, until the goulash soup is gently bubbling and the scent of bell peppers fills the kitchen.

A dollop of sour cream on top and some freshly chopped parsley mellow out the heat, while dark farmhouse bread soaks up the rest of the sauce. The 400 ml is enough for a substantial portion; on a hungry day, it can easily serve two when accompanied by a slice of bread. Those who prefer it spicier can add another dollop of paprika paste and stir it in briefly.

If you would like to try more from the range, you will find the clear Festive Beef Soup and the mild Potato Soup with Bacon among the soups from Manufaktur U, both made from the same slowly simmered bone broth. Unopened, the can stays fresh for up to 2 years, without any need for a refrigerator.

A producer that values care

Behind this goulash soup is not a large-scale commercial kitchen, and certainly not our own: it is cooked for us by a small producer that Kerstin and Stephan Uhlenbusch selected for the Manufaktur U brand because they still cook in small batches instead of using an assembly line.

Ingredients like potatoes, onions, and bell peppers are cleaned, cut, and weighed by hand before they simmer with the beef in the slowly cooked bone broth—the production is an EU-certified artisanal process. The soup is naturally so flavorful that it requires no taste enhancers at all.

The Manufaktur U assortment in our shop now includes ten soups, from this goulash soup to the Cream of Game Soup with Venison Meatballs—each one cooked with time and care instead of being mass-produced. You can taste that from the very first spoonful.