Frankfurter Goulash a la Walter Slezak (The New York Times Cookbook, 1961)

A book that's in good enough shape to still have it's frontispiece with copyright date! This is a pleasant change.

It does beg a couple questions though. Firstly, if I have a bit of a critical attitude towards 1960s cooking, why do I seem to have so many 1960-era cookbooks? Secondly, why do I have so many books in bad enough shape that I have to do research to figure out their ages?

The answer is the same for both questions: I get the majority of my cookbooks second hand. They come from thrift stores, garage sales, and book sales, with a few purchased new if they strike my fancy. Some are in great shape, and some are held together with tape and ingredients from recipes made by former owners. Some I check the dates before buying, and others I don't.

I had picked this New York Times Cookbook because it is in immaculate shape; the previous owner was either a neat freak or didn't actually cook. I didn't realise it was from the 60s until after I had browsed through it and selected the recipe. Even in eras with inedible food, there are the odd moments of yummy genius.

Frankfurter Goulash a la Walter Slezak wasn't necessarily the best recipe in this book, but it certainly looked the most interesting. I love German frankfurters (as opposed to hot dogs which are a different beast entirely), and new recipes to use them in are always welcome. This also looked like it would easily make enough for several lunches for the week.

Walter Slezak was a German actor who was in over a hundred American movies, including The Inspector General with Danny Kaye in 1949.  I believe I've seen a couple of his films, but now that I've had one of his family recipes, I feel I should check out more of his work.

This recipe is being modest when it says 6 generous servings. I tried to take into account that produce now might be larger in size than that available in the 1960s, and I used a can of whole tomatoes. I discovered that there are twelve frankfurters in 2 pounds. With each measuring about a foot, this is a lot of frankfurter. Add in the suggested potato and salad, and 6 people would be extremely well fed with this dish.

I did not use 1/4 cup oil. I ended up using about 2 Tbsp worth, that that sufficed. I thought I had caraway seeds, but couldn't find them. I decided to go with rosemary instead. The tomatoes were no salt added, and I didn't add any additional - I think this could end up very salty. With just the frankfurters it seemed enough. If you make this with hot paprika (which I did), it ends up with a nice kick. I had this for lunch with a bit of leftover mashed potato. A very filling and delicious lunch for a cold, wintery day.

Frankfurter Goulash a la Walter Slezak
6 generous servings
1/4 cup vegetable oil or shortening
6 large onions, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
10 large green peppers, cut into 1 1 /2-inch cubes
1 1/2 tablespoons caraway seeds
2 1/2 cups canned tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons paprika
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 pounds frankfurters, sliced 1/2 inch thick

1. In a large heavy kettle, heat the oil and add the onions and garlic. Cook over moderate heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the onions begin to take on colour. Add the green peppers and cook, stirring, five minutes longer. Cover and continue cooking twenty minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Add the caraway seeds, half the tomatoes and the paprika and cover again. Simmer twenty minutes longer, stirring occasionally. Add the remaining tomatoes, if necessary, to prevent the vegetables from becoming dry.

3. When the goulash has thickened slightly, add the salt and pepper and frankfurter slices. Cover and heat thoroughly. Serve with plain boiled potatoes and a crisp green salad.