Graham's Goulash

Serves: to serve 6

Prep Time: 15 Minutes

Cook Time: 1 Hour 35 Minutes

Ready In: 1 hr 50 mins

2 lb - lean minced beef (ground beef)

1 lb - turkey mince

2 large - onions

1½ pints - water

1½ pints - tinned tomato juice (sauce)

1¾ lb - tinned chopped tomatoes (diced tomatoes)

3 cloves - garlic

2 tablespoons - Italian seasoning **

3 - bay leaves

3 tablespoons - soy sauce

- salt and pepper

1 lb - uncooked macaroni

1 tablespoon - garlic powder

Sauté the minced beef in a large casserole dish over medium-high heat for just a few minutes, stirring all the time to break up the meat, until no pink remains. Spoon the meat into a sieve and allow it to drain (but leave any fat in the casserole dish for the next step).
Peel and chop the onions and peel and finely chop the garlic. Add these to the dish (with the residual beef fat) and sauté over a medium heat for 5-8 minutes until they are tender. Place the meat back in the dish and add the water, the tomato juice (sauce), the chopped tomatoes, Italian seasoning, bay leaves and soy sauce. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and ½ tablespoon of freshly ground black pepper and stir well to mix all the ingredients. Cover the casserole dish and cook gently for 15 to 20 minutes on a medium heat, stirring occasionally.
Add the macaroni and the garlic powder, stir well, re-cover the dish, and simmer for about 30 minutes. Turn off the heat, remove and discard the bay leaves and allow the mixture to sit for about 10 minutes more before serving with garlic bread (plus a side salad if wished).
** If you are not able to get hold of Italian seasoning, it is simply a mix of equal quantities of basil, marjoram, oregano, rosemary and thyme, so if you have the dried herbs, just add ½ teaspoon of each.