Around the World in 80 Plates: Hungary

I picked up a package of Tufurky Kielbasa one day at Rainbow Foods here in Ottawa with the intent of making something but not really knowing what. I ended up finding Paprikás krumpli sort of backwards, instead of buying ingredients to make a specific dish, I bought the sausage and googled Hungarian cuisine and found a dish with potatoes and sausage that I thought they would work in (albeit not kielbasa but hey I'm working with a limited assortment here). The dish was spiced with paprika and cumin which sounded pretty good to me so I decided to give it a try. I am so happy I did because pretty good is way undershooting this dish. It was warm and hearty and so flavourful. I couldn't shut up while I was eating, I just kept exclaiming how delicious it was after every bite. I even called dibs on the leftovers for lunch the next day before finishing what was in my bowl.

I used this recipe only changing the farmer's sausage for 2 sliced Tofurky kielbasa and less oil. I made sure to brown the kielbasa a bit in the pot before adding the tomato and water (3 cups in total which I added a bit of veg broth powder to before adding it to the pot to add a bit more flavour). For the sour cream on top, again I used the cashew yogurt from Artisan Vegan Cheese. I added a bit of bottled lemon juice and a pinch of salt to make it just a bit tangier but it was still quite liquid. It melts in with the stew when you drizzle it on top and makes it even more flavourful and rich. The potatoes soak up all kinds of flavour and spice while they cook in the stew which makes them the best bites. I ended up using Yukon Gold potatoes since it was the only kind I could find organic at the store and they worked just fine. Plus I love Yukon Gold potatoes because they have such a great flavour all on their own. The kielbasa I was a bit worried about, thinking it might get soft or fall apart being cooked for so long in the pot but it held it's own. I think the initial browning helped out for sure but you could even cook it separately and add it in during the last 10 minutes of cooking if you wanted. I seriously recommend making this dish, it has instantly become one of my favourites. Even just typing this is making me crave it again!