Country Goulash Skillet

The last week of February. March is next week and March contains March 8th and that's where most of my head is, which is the predictable pattern now, the body getting there before the mind.

I've been thinking about going to Salina. Not this March — I'm not ready for this March — but at some point. Going to Derek's grave. Three years and I haven't been. His mother Linda sent a card at Christmas, the way she does since I called to tell her about Derek Owens Gallagher, who doesn't exist yet because I'm not married and don't have children, but the name Derek means something and Linda Owens knows it and the card she sent was a small gift — a card with a painting of a Kansas prairie on the front and two lines inside in her handwriting: "Derek would be glad you're still here. So am I."

I keep the card on the shelf in my room. Next to the Purple Heart in its frame. Next to a photograph of my unit — me and Derek and four other soldiers whose names I know and whose faces I can see clearly and whose lives I've tracked at a distance since the discharge. Derek is in the middle row, left. His laugh is visible even in the photo. That laugh.

I made elk stew Wednesday from the freezer stock — the last of the elk before elk season in October. By March I'm usually at the bottom of the freezer, making the most out of whatever's left. I slow-roasted the last shoulder with root vegetables and dried mushrooms for four hours and it became something excellent out of the last of what I had. There's a lesson there about the end of the supply being the moment for the most careful cooking. Don't save it. Use it. Make it into the best thing it can be.

The elk shoulder is gone now, but the lesson it gave me — that the end of the supply calls for the most careful, honest cooking — stuck around. This country goulash skillet is what I make when I want that same quality of attention with what’s on hand: ground meat, pantry staples, a little patience. It’s not elk and it’s not four hours, but it carries the same spirit. You start with not much, and you make it into something worth sitting down to.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 40 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (or substitute ground elk or venison)
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
1 cup beef broth
1 1/2 cups elbow macaroni, uncooked
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (optional, for topping)

Instructions

Brown the meat. Heat a large deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook, breaking it apart, until no longer pink, about 7–8 minutes. Drain excess fat.
Sauté the vegetables. Add the diced onion and green pepper to the skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
Build the sauce. Stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, beef broth, and Worcestershire sauce. Add the paprika, oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
Add the pasta. Stir in the uncooked elbow macaroni. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer, stirring every 5 minutes, until the pasta is tender and has absorbed most of the liquid, about 15–18 minutes.
Finish and serve. Taste and adjust seasoning. If using cheese, sprinkle it over the top, cover for 2 minutes to melt, then serve directly from the skillet.

Nutrition (per serving)

Country Goulash Skillet — The Last of the Freezer, Made Right