Goulash (Hungarian: gulyás) is a meal made of meat and vegetables seasoned with paprika and other spices. Originating in Hungary, goulash is a common meal predominantly eaten in Central Europe but also in other parts of Europe. It is one of the national dishes of Hungary and a symbol of the country.

Its origins may be traced back as far as the 10th century to stews eaten by Hungarian shepherds. At that time, the cooked and flavoured meat was sun-dried and packed into bags produced from sheep's stomachs, needing only water to make it into a meal. Earlier versions of goulash did not include paprika, as it was not introduced to Europe until the 16th century.

The name originates from the Hungarian gulyás [ˈɡujaːʃ] ^ⓘ. The word gulya means 'herd of cattle' in Hungarian, and gulyás means 'cattle herder' or 'cowboy'. Over time the dish became gulyáshús ('goulash meat') – a meat dish which was prepared by herdsmen. In medieval times, the Hungarian herdsman of Central Europe made use of every possible part of the animal, as was common practice. As meat was scarce, nearly all of the animal was often used to make the soup.

Today, gulyás refers both to the herdsmen, and to the soup or stew. From the Middle Ages until well into the 19th century, the Puszta was the home of enormous herds of cattle. They were driven, in their tens of thousands, to Europe's biggest cattle markets in Moravia, Vienna, Nuremberg and Venice. The herdsmen made sure that there were always some cattle that had to be slaughtered along the way, the flesh of which provided them with gulyáshús.

In Hungarian cuisine, traditional gulyás, pörkölt, and paprikás are dishes which evolved from the food of the cattle herders of the Hungarian plains.

In present-day Hungary, gulyás is known as a soup. It is also called gulyásleves, which translates to gulyás soup, although gulyás is understood commonly as a soup without specifying. While it may have more solid parts than broth and some versions may be called by English speakers a stew, the Hungarian language makes a strict distinction between stews and gulyás. The dish called gulyás is quite conservative with very little variations through the country. The basic ingredients include beef, onions, paprika, caraway seeds, potatoes, carrots and fresh noodles added directly to the soup (csipetke). Altered versions got their own name, like babgulyás which has beans or hamisgulyás which is meatless. Bográcsgulyás means a gulyás prepared traditionally in a kettle, called bogrács, outdoors, over open fire. It can be prepared anywhere because it needs only the bogrács, an iron tripod, a chain and a campfire. Every type of gulyás is a strictly one pot dish and considered a main course, even if it is a more soupy version.

Except for paprikás, Hungarian stews do not rely on flour or roux for thickening. Original Hungarian recipes rarely use tomatoes and only in small quantities, the deep red colors come all from the authentic Hungarian paprika spice.

Modern gulyás is made from beef, while the original herdsmen had more access to mutton. Typical cuts include the shank, shin, or shoulder; in Hungary beef from older cattle is more common, which makes tastier broth but takes a longer time to cook. Meat is cut into chunks, seasoned with salt, and then browned with sliced onion in a pot with oil or lard. Paprika is added, along with water. After that the gulyás is left to simmer. After cooking a while, whole or ground caraway seed, and soup vegetables like potato, carrot, parsley root are added. However, paprika and potatoes are post-16th century additions, while gulyás traces its origin back to the Hungarians nomadic past. At the end small egg noodles called csipetke can be added. The name Csipetke comes from pinching small, fingernail-sized bits out of fresh dough (csipet being Hungarian for 'pinch') before adding them to the boiling soup. Stew-like versions of gulyás are made the same way with letting the broth simmering down.