Weight Watchers Goulash (2024)

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This quick and easyWeight Watchers Goulashrecipe will become a comfort food staple for weeknight dinners that your whole family will love.

Goulash is one of the classic traditional recipes of our childhood memories. Also known as American chop suey or American Goulash, it has been a great recipe for family dinner for years.

Weight Watchers Goulash (1)

You can hide a ton of vegetables from picky eaters and bulk it up for yourself since vegetables are zero points on anyWeight Watchersplan.

With our updated twist on the classic comfort food, we provide healthy changes that you can feel great about, all while still serving up an incredible meal that will make your mouth water.

Our Weight Watchers Goulash recipe will be one of your favorite meals. The best part about this Weight Watchers Goulash recipe is that it can be made in the Instant Pot which will cut down on both time and effort in the kitchen.

Where’s the recipe?

There’s a lot of information here, including tips, nutrition facts, and detailed cooking instructions. I do this to better serve all of my readers. If this is more information than you need, please simply scroll to the bottom of the page, where you will find our Weight WatchersGoulash Recipe.

Table of Contents

Ingredients in Weight Watchers Goulash Recipe

  • Ground Turkey:Fat-free ground turkey is zero points. We love using ground turkey as our ground meat for this recipe. You can opt for lean ground turkey or extra-lean ground beef, but you’ll need to add a few points per serving (this can change based on the plan you’re on).
  • Garlic:Minced garlic is zero points for Weight Watchers but gets all the points in flavor!
  • Italian Seasoning:Italian seasoning is a blend of marjoram, thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano and basil.
  • Yellow Onion:You’ll need a chopped onion for this recipe, however we love the time saver of grabbing a bag of chopped yellow onions from the freezer section at your local grocery store to speed this recipe up.If using frozen, nothing changes–add the onions at the same time you would fresh.
  • Bay Leaves: Bay leaves are an aromatic leaf commonly used in soups, stews, and pasta dishes to add a great depth of flavor.
  • Zucchini:You can add any squash that you like, or even extra zucchini.If you don’t like it, leave it out and add another vegetable.
  • Bell Peppers:These sweet nightshades work well paired with tomato-based sauces.We prefer to use green pepper or red pepper in this recipe, but any color of pepper is great.
  • Crushed Tomatoes:You can substitute a jar of no added sugar spaghetti sauce, but this will add some points to the recipe.I love using the spices and canned tomatoes to make my own delicious tomato sauce. We find that crushed tomatoes gives this recipe a more authentic goulash flavor than when using tomato paste or diced tomatoes.
  • Whole Wheat Pasta:Whole wheat pasta is far less processed than its bleached counterparts and saves you 1 point per serving. We love using whole wheat elbow macaroni noodles. We don’t recommend using egg noodles for this recipe as they absorb up liquid and flavor quickly.
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How to make Weight Watchers Goulash Recipe in the Instant Pot

  1. Sauté:Set your Instant Pot to sauté and spray with oil.
  2. Brown your turkey:Use a spatula to break apart the ground turkey. Cook until crumbled and browned.
  3. Add your spices:Add garlic, Italian seasonings, onions, and bay leaves to the pot. Mix well. If using pasta sauce, omit the seasonings and tomatoes.
  4. Add your vegetables:Add chopped zucchini, bell peppers, and crushed tomatoes and 14 oz. of water.
  5. Add noodles:Stir in uncooked elbow macaroni.
  6. Pressure Cook:Close and lock the lid. Turn the valve to sealing. Select Pressure Cook and set time for 3 minutes.
  7. Quick Release:When the cooking time is up,quick releasethe pressure and remove the lid.
  8. Serve:Stir the ingredients in the pot to evenly mix. Serve warm and top with parmesan cheese, if desired.
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How to make Weight Watchers Goulash Recipe on the stovetop

  1. Brown your turkey in a deep large skillet or large saucepan on medium/high heat until cooked to a temperature of 165°F.
  2. While your meat is browning, boil your noodles until they are just undercooked (they will continue to cook in the sauces).
  3. Add the noodles, zucchini, bell peppers, tomatoes, and spices to your turkey and stir well.
  4. Simmer for ten minutes until your vegetables are soft.
  5. Top with parmesan cheese, if desired and serve warm.
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Recipe Tips

  • Our Weight Watchers Goulash recipe is the perfect recipe formeal prep. Just freeze in serving size containers and reheat in the microwave when ready to eat!
  • This goulash recipe is pure comfort food, and great for adding in extra vegetables. You can hide a ton of vegetables by pulverizing them in the food processor before adding to the Instant Pot. Your picky eaters will never know!
  • If you are using gluten free noodles, reduce your cook time to 2 minutes. Double check your ww points as not all gluten-free pastas have the same point value as whole wheat pasta.
  • This goulash recipe is easy to customize for your family’s tastes. I like to add mushrooms, carrots, and ricedcaulifloweralong with the peppers, onions, and zucchini.You can leave out any veggie that you don’t like, and double up on the ones you do.
  • Swapping the crushed tomatoes for other varieties, such as diced tomatoes or tomato puree, will change the way this recipe comes out. We prefer using crushed tomatoes over diced tomatoes in this healthy goulash recipe.
  • Some people struggle with theburn warningwhen cooking tomato based recipes. I’ve never had that issue with this goulash, but if you’re concerned, add the tomato sauce last and don’t stir the food before cooking.
  • The next time you make this meal, feel free to use whatever spare veggies you have on hand. It’s a great recipe to make when you need to clear out the fridge of spare vegetables.
  • For a list of the tools that I used in this recipe, and my other favorites, check out myAmazon store.
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Weight Watchers Points

  • Blue Plan Points:Each serving is 1 Blue Plan Points
  • Green Plan Points:Each serving is 2 Green Plan Points
  • Purple Plan Points:Each serving is 0 Purple Plan Points
  • 2022/2023 Points:2

MoreWeight Watchers Instant Pot Recipes

  • Weight Watchers Gyros
  • Weight Watchers Stuffed Pepper Soup
  • Weight Watchers Tuscan Chicken Pasta
  • Weight Watchers Swedish Meatballs
  • Weight Watchers Crack Chicken
  • WW Egg Roll in a Bowl

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Weight Watchers Goulash Recipe

Created by: Becca Ludlum

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Approximate Serving Size: 1 1/4 cups

Servings 6

This healthy goulash recipe is so easy to make and can be made with turkey or beef. It's a tasty meal that's packed full of veggies!

Equipment

Ingredients

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb ground turkey fat free
  • 1 tbsp garlic minced
  • 2 ½ tbsp Italian seasoning
  • ½ cup onion minced
  • 2 bay leaves take these out after cooking
  • 1 cup zucchini chopped
  • 1 cup bell pepper chopped
  • 14 oz crushed tomatoes or a jar of pasta sauce. If using a jar of sauce, omit the spices below.
  • 1 cup whole wheat pasta elbow, dry

Instructions

Instant Pot Directions:

  • Set your Instant Pot to Sauté and spray with oil.

  • Use a spatula to break apart the ground turkey. Cook until crumbled and browned. 1 lb ground turkey

  • Add garlic, Italian seasoning, onions, and bay leaves to the pot. Mix well. 1 tbsp garlic, 2 ½ tbsp Italian seasoning, ½ cup onion, 2 bay leaves

  • Add chopped zucchini, bell peppers, and crushed tomatoes and 14 oz. of water. 1 cup zucchini, 1 cup bell pepper, 14 oz crushed tomatoes

  • Stir in your whole wheat noodles. 1 cup whole wheat pasta

  • Close and lock the lid and turn the valve to sealing. Select Pressure cook and set time for 3 minutes.

  • When the cook time is up, quick release the pressure and remove the lid.

  • Stir the ingredients in the pot to evenly mix. Serve warm and top with parmesan cheese, if desired.

Stovetop Directions:

  • Brown your turkey in a skillet on medium/high heat until cooked, 165°F. 1 lb ground turkey

  • While your meat is browning, boil your noodles until they are just undercooked (they will continue to cook in the sauces). 1 cup whole wheat pasta

  • Add the noodles, zucchini, bell peppers, tomatoes, and spices to your turkey and stir well. 1 cup zucchini, 1 cup bell pepper, 14 oz crushed tomatoes, 1 tbsp garlic, 2 ½ tbsp Italian seasoning, ½ cup onion

  • Simmer for ten minutes until your vegetables are soft.

  • Top with parmesan cheese, if desired and serve warm.

Video

Notes

Tips:

  • This is the perfect recipe for meal prep. Just freeze in serving size containers and reheat in the microwave when ready to eat!
  • This recipe is great for stuffing in extra vegetables You can hide a ton of vegetables by pulverizing in the food processor before adding to the Instant Pot. Your picky eaters will never know!
  • If you are using gluten free noodles reduce your cook time to 2 minutes. Double check your points as not all gluten-free pastas have the same point value as whole wheat pasta.
  • Use the sauté feature on your Instant Pot to continue cooking your pasta if it is more al dente than you prefer.
  • This recipe is easy to customize for your family’s tastes. I like to add carrots, and riced cauliflower along with the peppers, onions, and zucchini. You can leave out any veggie that you don’t like, and double up on the ones you do.

Weight Watchers Points:

1 Blue Plan Point |2 Green Plan Points | 0 Purple Plan Points | 2023 Points: 2

Nutrition

Calories: 165kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 131mg | Potassium: 590mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1015IU | Vitamin C: 43mg | Calcium: 73mg | Iron: 3mg

Make This Recipe?

Make sure to follow on Pinterest @bludlum and on Instagram @beccaludlum

Weight Watchers Goulash (7)

Becca Ludlum

Healthy recipe creator, self-confessed food snob, and certified Level 1 Precision Nutrition Coach. I create healthy recipes with minimally processed ingredients, but have never turned down a homemade brownie. ;)

Weight Watchers Goulash (2024)

FAQs

How many calories are in 1 cup of goulash? ›

Goulash, with beef, noodles or macaroni, tomato base (1 cup) contains 35.2g total carbs, 29.8g net carbs, 7.9g fat, 16.5g protein, and 275 calories.

What is the difference between American Goulash and Hungarian goulash? ›

Hungarian Goulash is a thick meat and vegetable stew with a broth that's heavily seasoned with paprika, while American Goulash is a quick dish made from ground beef, tomato sauce, herbs, and elbow macaroni noodles. It also goes by the name of American Chop Suey.

How big is a serving of goulash? ›

This Beefy American Goulash makes a little over 15 cups total, so each satisfying serving is almost 2 cups! That's a lot of comfort for just 379 calories or 8 Green, 8 Blue or 3 Purple Weight Watchers SmartPoints.

What's the difference between stroganoff and goulash? ›

Goulash is a stew, and stroganoff is a sauce

Stroganoff, on the other hand, is pan-fried on the stove and consists of steak, mushrooms, and onions that are tossed with a sauce made of brandy and sour cream. It's traditionally served over rice instead of noodles.

How many calories are in homemade goulash? ›

Beef goulash contains 254 calories per 249 g serving. This serving contains 9.4 g of fat, 34 g of protein and 7 g of carbohydrate. The latter is 2.7 g sugar and 1 g of dietary fiber, the rest is complex carbohydrate. Beef goulash contains 2.3 g of saturated fat and 87 mg of cholesterol per serving.

How many carbs are in 1 cup of homemade goulash? ›

Beef Goulash (1 cup) contains 7.2g total carbs, 6.2g net carbs, 9.4g fat, 34.2g protein, and 256 calories.

What should you serve with goulash? ›

Serve up a hearty goulash for the ultimate comforting stew on winter nights. Searching for the perfect accompaniment? Try mashed potato, dumplings or your favourite veg.

What is German goulash made of? ›

This German Goulash is what the Swabians in Germany call “Hungarian Goulash”. Ha! A juicy and tender beef stew made with paprika, peppers, and a red wine sauce. Originally goulash (gulyás) is from Hungary but over the centuries this traditional stew obviously traveled into different cuisines, including German cuisine.

What is goulash slang for? ›

a heterogeneous mixture; hodgepodge; jumble.

How many calories are in 8 oz of goulash? ›

There are 265 calories in 8 ounces of Goulash. * The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet.

How many calories are in 3 cups of goulash? ›

There are 814 calories in 3 cups of Beef Goulash.

How many calories are in a bowl of American goulash? ›

418 Calories

Is Hamburger Helper the same as goulash? ›

Hungarian goulash is a thick soup with meat and vegetables, usually seasoned with paprika. American goulash is very different. It generally has tomato sauce, macaroni and beef. It's almost like a homemade hamburger helper.

Why do Hungarians eat goulash? ›

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 origin may be traced back as far as the 10th century, to stews eaten by Hungarian shepherds.

Is goulash a Midwest thing? ›

American goulash is usually referred to in the midwestern and southern United States as simply "goulash". As a descendant, of sorts, of Hungarian goulash, the only real connection seems to be the name, and the inclusion of beef and paprika.

How many calories are in 2 cups of beef goulash? ›

There are 583 calories in 2 cups of Goulash. * The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet.

How many calories are in traditional beef goulash? ›

For a example, a basic recipe for American goulash made with ground beef, macaroni, tomatoes, onions, and seasonings might have an approximate calorie content of around 300-400 calories per serving.

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