And now for the one and only true Gulyash recipe:
Ingredient Measure comments Metric Stupid beef 1 kg 2 lb cut into cubes about 2cm (1 in) onion 600 g 1.5 lb finely cut red wine 0.2 l 1/2 pt very dry red wine, not californian sugar-wine sour cream 0.2 l 1/2 pt tomato puree 25 g 1 oz tomatoes 2 or 3 2 if small ones, 3 if big ones; cut very fine Red peppers 2 remove inner part, cut into 2cm by 0.5cm strips (1 in by 1/4 in) paprika powder (hot) 1 table spoon replace part of it by chili if you like it hot (remember: Gulash has to burn twice, first time when it enters your body, second time when it leaves your body butter 1 or 2 tablespoons don't use oil or margarine instead! Get big pot, put on flame until very hot.
Put butter into it.
As soon as butter is completely fluid, put all the meat in.
Fry until meat is sealed.
Put paprika powder (and/or chili) on it.
Fry for another minute, stirring a little bit.
Reduce heat, put red wine onto meat, then onions and red pepper.
Add water so everything is just covered.
Add tomato puree.
Stir so everything is mixed quite good.
Get it to just boil.
Reduce heat so it just keeps boiling.
Put lid on pot and keep it boiling for about 45 minutes.
Add sour cream (and salt and pepper if you wish) and stir.
And now for the most important part: enjoy.
You might just have bread with it, or - as I prefer it - with homemade "Spätzles" (a kind of pasta which is very common in some parts of southern Germany and in some parts of Austria).