Killer’s Goulash

Directions

1. Pre-cut the shallots, onion, and garlic. If you’re mincing the garlic, keep a separate dish for it. However, I like to slice garlic into slices and throw them in at the same time as the shallots and onion.
   1. Minced garlic cooks very quickly and can burn, destroying the flavor profile, so be mindful.
2. Fill a large pot with water, add 2 tablespoons of salt, and bring it to a boil over high heat.
   1. ('Keep an eye on the water, and when it starts to boil, add the pasta and cook it until it’s just al dente.', ['Stir the pasta frequently to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.', 'The reason is that the pasta will continue to cook when the sauce is added in a later step, making it too mushy. Adding the two together at the right time allows the pasta to be served close to al dente.', 'Don’t strain the pasta until you’ve added some of the water to the sauce!!!'])
3. Lightly coat a good-sized saucepan with olive oil, then add the butter to the pan.
   1. This pan should be able to handle at least 32 ounces of pasta sauce, with all of the meat and veggies in the same pan.
   2. The butter can just be plopped in the middle of the pan. I use Kerrygold salted butter for its great flavor, but Ireland’s Truly is also very good.
   3. This pan will be used to sauté your vegetables and to enhance the depth of flavor in the pasta sauce.
4. While water is heating, fire up the good-sized saucepan on medium heat.
5. Sautéing vegetables:
   1. ('If using minced garlic:', ['Add your shallots and onions to the pan and stir frequently until they begin to turn translucent. Then, add the minced garlic and continue stirring until the shallots and onions are translucent.'])
   2. ('If using ¼″ sliced garlic:', ['Add your shallots and onions, and garlic to the pan and stir often until they are translucent.'])
6. As soon as the vegetables are translucent, add the ground sirloin, and break it apart into small chunks.
   1. Incorporate all the vegetables and meat while cooking, and stir often.
   2. Be sure not to cook until it’s all brown. You want a slight red hue on the meat.
7. As soon as the meat is ready (slightly reddish), coat it with the rosemary and thyme, then incorporate them together. Let the heat activate the rosemary and thyme for about 1 to 1.5 minutes.
   1. You may also add salt (not too much) and pepper at this point if you like. I always do.
8. Add the 32–64 ounces of pasta sauce to the saucepan shortly after incorporating the rosemary and thyme.
9. Set the saucepan to low heat, add the wine and pasta water to the sauce, and let it simmer, stirring every couple of minutes. About 5–8 minutes. This will allow the wine’s stank to burn off and add richer flavor.
10. Drain the pasta in a colander, then coat it with a light layer of olive oil and toss to prevent it from sticking together.
11. With the pasta now out of the pot, pour all of the sauce from the saucepan into the pasta pot.
    1. This can be an interesting challenge, so have assistance, oven mitts, and a spatula ready.
12. Dump all the pasta back into the pot with the pasta sauce. Add any remaining sauce from the jar to the pot and incorporate it.
    1. There may be extra sauce left over from the 64 ounces, because it may not have fit into the saucepan.
13. Cover the pot with a lid, and let it sit for maybe 5–8 minutes. This allows the additional sauce to inherit the flavors of the main sauce and to cook the pasta to the desired state.
14. Serve, baby! 😁