In short, this Vegetarian Goulash recipe is actually an AUTHENTIC Hungarian Bean Goulash recipe. If you would like to eat a vegetable goulash soup EXACTLY how Hungarians eat it, you should try this recipe. Our family has been making meatless goulash this way for generations. It is a 30-min simple, one-pot soup using only veggies and beans.
You may not know but we are in fact Hungarians. You can see a glimpse of the Hungarian vegan cuisine in some of the recipes like this Vegan Cabbage Soup or this 30-min Red Lentil Soup. We love eating a variety of dishes from different cuisines, but from time to time we get back to our roots. More Hungarian family recipes to come for sure.
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What is goulash?
Actually, Hungarians call “goulash” (with Hungarian pronunciation “gulyás”) the person looking after a herd of cows. As this dish was originally cooked by them, it was named after them. Traditionally, goulash is a one-pot meal, cooked in a cauldron on an open fire. The men used the ingredients they had on hand, which were usually beef, onion, potato, carrots, and sweet paprika powder. In poorer times, when meat was scarce, they used beans instead of beef.
The authentic goulash is NOT a STEW, but a thick SOUP. The stew version of this dish is actually called “pörkölt”.
Types of goulash
There is actually three authentic Hungarian goulash recipe:
- Beef goulash
- Mock Goulash (only bones, no meat)
- Bean goulash (no animal products)
In different regions and in other countries outside Hungary there might be other variations, although the basis of the dish they call goulash should be the same.
What do you need for an authentic Hungarian goulash?
If you were searching for the term Hungarian goulash, you might come across various recipe versions. However, if you are looking for the original recipe you only need the following ingredients:
- beef or beans
- onion
- garlic
- potatoes
- carrots and other root vegetables like parsnip
- tomato paste or goulash paste (if it is available to you)
- sweet smoked paprika powder
- cumin
- parsley
- liquid smoke – optional (to replicate cooking in a cauldron on an open fire)
Where do other goulash recipes fail to be real?
There are certainly a number of ways you can deviate from the original Hungarian goulash recipe, but you definitely don’t need the following ingredients to make a traditional recipe:
- zucchini, eggplant, celery, and other non-root veggies
- bell peppers, tomatoes or similar veggies
- pasta, rice, or polenta of any kind
- dairy or non-dairy substitutes, not even sour cream
- soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce or any other flavor enhancer
- cilantro, oregano and other green herbs
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How to make Vegetarian Goulash Soup aka Authentic Hungarian Bean Goulash?
Making a meatless goulash is easy and simple. Depending on how large you chop the vegetables, the soup can be ready in 30 minutes.
Prepare your vegetables
Peel and chop the onion and garlic. Wash and chop potatoes. Wash, peel and slice carrots and parsnip. Cook your beans or use a canned version.
Making the vegetable goulash soup
Heat your stockpot to medium heat and add olive oil. Cook the chopped onion (photo #1) for 1-2 minutes. Now, add the sliced carrots and parsnip (photo #2). Stir and cook for 5-6 minutes. Then, add the chopped garlic and the seasoning (salt, pepper, parsley, and cumin) (photo #3) and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Now, add the sweet smoked paprika powder and the tomato paste (photo #4), and stir until combined.
Pour the vegetable broth (photo #5) and cook the soup for approx. 5 minutes (check if carrots and parsnip are almost cooked). Now, add the diced potatoes (photo #6) and cook for another 5 minutes. Finally, add the cooked beans (photo #7) and cook for another 5 minutes. That’s all! You are ready! Serve and enjoy!
Top tips to make the best vegetarian goulash
- Chop vegetables evenly – We added carrots and parsnip first as they need the most time to be cooked, then potatoes. They will cook more evenly if the veggies are the same size.
- Chop vegetables smaller – If you prefer to reduce the cooking time, you can cut the potatoes to smaller or slice the carrots thinner.
- How spicy should it be? – Depending on how hot and spicy you prefer your soup, you can add chili powder or sriracha or freshly chopped raw chili peppers beside the sweet paprika powder. In Hungary, we use Eros Pista which is a roughly pureed hot paprika and nothing else. You will only need a really small amount to get the soup hot.
- Beans vs chickpeas – While the traditional recipe calls for bean, you can use chickpeas if you like them better.
- Why coconut oil? – The traditional way is to make the base for cooking onion and garlic with lard. As we eat plant-based, the closest alternative is coconut oil. Why? It gives the soup a fatty after-taste similar to lard.
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What to serve with a vegetable goulash soup?
If you’d like to keep it authentic, the only side Hungarians pair this soup with either vegetarian or beef one is bread. We use the bread slices to dunk them in the soup and eat it like that. Goulash soup is a one-pot dish, so the side is actually the cooked potatoes that are already in it.
FAQs and Substitutions
What kind of beans can I use?
The most authentic ones are kidney beans of any kind: red kidney beans, white cannellini beans aka white kidney beans, or speckled kidney beans… We have also made several times with chickpeas and the soup tastes amazing.
What else can I add to the soup?
If you’d like to add more veggies, but still keeping it real, we recommend adding mushrooms. If you’d like some beefy texture, you can add vegan beef or marinated soy chunks.
How long can I store the soup?
You can store in the fridge for up to 4-5 days without a problem.
Can I freeze it?
Yes, you can. It freezes really well, for a couple of months.
This Vegetarian Goulash Soup recipe is vegan (so egg-free and dairy-free), gluten-free, nut-free, and soy-free. It is WFPB-friendly (whole foods plant-based) as you need to skip cooking onion and garlic in oil and add all veggies directly to the veggie broth.
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More comfort food recipes
You can browse through our Vegan Soup Recipes or our Quick & Easy Vegan Meals collection or check out
- Vegan Sweet Potato Soup
- Vegan Cabbage Sausage Soup
- Vegan Jackfruit Stew
- Vegan Chili with Beans and Millet
- Lazy Vegan Pot Pie
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Vegetarian Goulash aka Authentic Hungarian Bean Goulash
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp Coconut oil
- 1 Onion medium
- 3-4 cloves Garlic
- 2 Potatoes
- 2-3 Carrot medium
- 1-2 Parsnip medium
- 15 oz Kidney beans 1 can
- 5 cup Veggie broth
- 1,5 tsp Tomato paste or goulash paste
- 1 tsp Sweet smoked paprika powder
- 1 tsp Parsley
- 1 tsp Cumin
- 1/2 tsp Salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp Pepper or to taste
Optional ingredients
- 1/2 tsp Liquid smoke optional to replicate the open fire taste
- 1-2 cup Mushroom optional
- Hot chili powder or flakes optional to taste
Instructions
Preparing the ingredients
- Peel and chop the onion and garlic. Wash and chop potatoes. Wash, peel and slice carrots and parsnip.
Making the soup
- Heat your stockpot to medium heat and add oil. Cook the chopped onion for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the sliced carrots and parsnip. Stir and cook for 5-6 minutes.
- Add chopped garlic and the seasoning (salt, pepper, parsley, and cumin) and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add the sweet paprika powder and the tomato or goulash paste, and stir until combined.
- Pour the vegetable broth and cook the soup for approx. 5 minutes.
- Add the diced potatoes and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Finally, add the cooked or canned beans and cook for another 5 minutes.
Notes
- Chop vegetables evenly - We added carrots and parsnip first as they need the most time to be cooked, then potatoes. They will cook more evenly if the veggies are the same size.
- Chop vegetables smaller - If you prefer to reduce the cooking time, you can cut the potatoes to smaller or slice the carrots thinner.
- How spicy should it be? - Depending on how hot and spicy you prefer your soup, you can add chili powder or sriracha or freshly chopped raw chili peppers beside the sweet paprika powder.
- Beans vs chickpeas - While the traditional recipe calls for bean, you can use chickpeas if you like them better.
- Why coconut oil? - The traditional way is to make the base for cooking onion and garlic with lard. As we eat plant-based, the closest alternative is coconut oil. Why? It gives the soup a fatty after-taste similar to lard.
- What to serve with a vegetable goulash soup? - If you'd like to keep it authentic, the only side Hungarians pair this soup with is bread. We use the bread slices to dunk them in the soup and eat it like that. Goulash soup is a one-pot dish, so the side is the cooked potatoes that are already in it.
- What kind of beans can I use? - The most authentic ones are kidney beans of any kind: red kidney beans, white cannellini beans aka white kidney beans, or speckled kidney beans... We have also made several times with chickpeas and the soup tastes amazing.
- What else can I add to the soup? - If you'd like to add more veggies, but still keeping it real, we recommend adding mushrooms.
Rebecca C
Hi! I’ve read in other recipes about true Hungarian Goulash that much more Hungarian Paprika is used- sometimes more than 1/4 cup or even more. Did you ever try your above recipe with more Paprika? Just curious. Thanks in advance for this recipe and for your answer to my question. 🙂
My Pure Plants
Hi Rebecca, 1/4 cup sounds like a lot. Depending on the amount the most we ever add is like 1-2 Tbsp, but that is for like 8-10 cup (2-2,5l) of soup. If you add more, it will make the soup sicker and will probably over-powers the other spices so you will only taste paprika in it. You also need to look out to have enough liquid when you add it. It can burn easily and turn the soup bitter.