Reading the post’s title a question may come up: why beef shank and not another beef part? Beef shank comes from the leg of a bull or a cow. Though it’s known for its tough texture, in this case it’s a perfect choice since stew (or pörkölt in Hungarian) is a slowly cooked dish that is suitable to allow beef shank to be sufficiently softened and tenderized.

Beef shank contains a lot of collagen that dissolves during the cooking and the sauce becomes soft and silky. Beside the quality of the meat another secret of a perfect stew in my opinion is onion. To get a thick sauce, lot of onions needed that melt completely while you’re simmering the stew on low heat. There are a few optional ingredients that can be added depending on individual preferences, such as red wine, smoked bacon, caraway seeds, green pepper and tomato.