
Vegan Goulash
Enjoy this warming and healthy dish!
This vegan goulash recipe is my favorite recipe for the cold season! It’s filled with all the comforting and filling ingredients like potatoes, sweet potatoes
Check out the Vegan Goulash FAQs if you have some questions regarding this recipe! And always feel free to ask me anything 🙂

Goulash – the Hungarian dish
Goulash is a traditional stew that originally consists of meat but I see no problem in replacing it with lentils. The word goulash actually describes the meat that is used but when we say goulash we mean the stew. So in Hungary, they call it a goulash soup. Also, there are certain steps you need to follow in order to make the perfect goulash at home. It starts with onions that you need to sauté, then

The spices matter!
Caraway is the most important spice for this meal. It really adds this special taste to the goulash. Another must-have herb is marjoram, it blends in perfectly. These two together with salt are all you need for this stew to taste so fabulous.

Easy and one-pot dish
This vegan goulash recipe is so easy to make and a one-pot dish too. The secret to this perfect taste is to cook the goulash really long and make sure that the potatoes are done. It’s best to prepare it in the morning, let it cook long enough and then let it rest to enjoy it for dinner. A goulash always tastes better if you let it rest for a few hours because the flavors are able to set properly.
You might want to check out another really comforting dish for the cold season – my very special and lovely one-pot vegetable dal! Give it a try 🙂

Vegan Goulash FAQs
- What kind of vinegar should I use? I would recommend cider vinegar or actually any kind of vinegar with 5-10% acidity works best (except for balsamic vinegar).
- Can I use chickpeas instead of lentils? Sure! You can add all kinds of legumes like chickpeas, white beans, kidney beans… Try them out and see what you like best in your goulash.
- What about mushrooms? Mushrooms are a great meat substitute as well, it’s just that some people don’t like the texture. I would recommend using button mushrooms.
- How long should I cook the goulash? Everything between 30 minutes and two hours is great!
- Is it possible to replace the lentils with jackfruit or tofu? Yes, of course! I found a really great recipe with jackfruit for you to try –> goulash with jackfruit
- How can I make this recipe oil-free? Simply use water instead of oil, it’s that simple. Maybe you need a little bit more water than oil but you will notice when you keep an eye on your onions while you sauté them. I love to cook oil-free as often as I can.
- Do I need to add sugar? You really don’t have to use sugar. Some people need to balance the acidity of the vinegar with sugar, but if you don’t mind the sour taste of vinegar, which is not at all prominent in this dish, you can add up to 2 tbsp of sugar.

Vegan Goulash
Ingredients
- 200 g onions
- 50 ml olive oil
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 100 ml vinegar
- 700 ml water
- 400 g potatoes
- 300 g sweet potatoes
- 250 g red bell pepper
- 500 g lentils cooked and drained
- 200 g tomatoes
- 4 tbsp marjoram fresh or dried, ground
- 2 tbsp caraway whole or ground
- salt and pepper season to taste
Instructions
- Peel the potatoes and cut them together with pepper and tomatoes into pieces
- Peel and then chop the onions into little pieces
- Pour oil in a heated pot and sauté the onions
- Add tomato paste to the onions and stir well
- Pour vinegar to it and again stir well
- Now pour water into the pot
- Add potatoes and sweet potatoes as well as pepper and let it simmer
- Add caraway, marjoram and salt/pepper
- When the potatoes are done, add lentils and tomatoes
- Let it simmer again for another 20 minutes
- Don't forget to stir every here and then
Notes
If you tried this Vegan Goulash or any other recipe on the blog, please let us know how you liked it and leave a comment or rating below!

2 Comments
Heather
Really like this recipe! But can I use chickpeas instead of lentils? 🙂
Natascha
Hello Heather! Of course, you can use chickpeas instead. Actually all kinds of beans work as well for this recipe. I highly encourage to try out different types of legumes and see what works best for you 🙂