Comfort me with Rice Paprikash

Over here in Monday Morning Cooking Club land four of our kids are currently sitting their final high school exams – the HSC. That means we’re on high demand motherhood duties.

Even if our kids are coping admirably, swatting through their study days and cruising through their exams, that doesn’t mean their Mums are coping! We’re watching our kids pull out all stops, and there’s really not that much we can do to help, is there?

Except cook!

So in today’s Monday Morning Cooking Corner – what’s your favourite comfort food?

Stress does weird things to digestion, for some it takes away appetite, for others it brings on cravings. For some it’s “I keep telling you Mum, I’m NOT hungry”, until (five minutes later) “Whaaaa, I’m starving and I want food right NOW!”

It all makes me think back to way-back-when, and reminisce about my childhood comfort foods, one of which was Rice Paprikash.

My Hungarian mother often made this dish when I was feeling unwell. It was considered terribly unglamorous, until risotto became a trendy dish you ordered in an upmarket trattoria. (The only problem is, it isn’t my daughter’s favourite comfort food….but that’s another post.)

Here’s the recipe:

Rice Paprikash

By Merelyn Chalmers Published: October 29, 2012

• Yield: Generous main course (4 Servings)
• Prep: 20 mins mins
• Cook: 1 hour min
• Ready In: 21 mins

Hungarian risotto to comfort the soul

Ingredients

• 80 ml olive oil
• 1 kg shin beef cut into large dice
• 3 large onions finely chopped
• 60 ml white wine
• 500 ml boiling water
• 2 cloves garlic crushed
• 1 red capsicum (pepper) sliced
• 1 heaped tablespoon mild paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
• 1 cup long grain rice
• 2 carrots peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 small tomato chopped

Instructions

1. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan on a medium–high heat and fry the veal until very brown. Remove from the pan and set aside.
   
2. Add the onions to the pan and fry until very brown, adding more oil if necessary.
   
3. Return the veal to the pan and add the wine and boiling water. Add the garlic, capsicum, paprika and cayenne pepper. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
   
4. Add the rice, carrots and tomato, stir to combine, then continue to simmer for a further 30 minutes, or until the veal is tender and the rice is cooked.
   
5. Stir regularly and add more boiling water as required. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
   

• Course: Main
• Skill Level: Easy

So friends, what’s your comfort food? What settles the butterflies in your tummy, or what do you rush to serve your family when the going gets tough and you need to get them going? Is it something simple like cheese on toast, or something sweet and soothing?