20 August 2015

Beef Stroganoff

Beef Stroganoff / www.delightfulrepast.com

Beef Stroganoff is something I hadn't made in a very long time until my husband brought it up the other day, saying I hadn't made it in probably 20 years. So I thought ... hmm ... seems like I'm not running that one into the ground, think I'll make it. It's kind of a retro thing, isn't it?

I used a more affordable cut of organic beef, "stir-fry" beef, and simmered the meat in the sauce for about 20 minutes. It probably needed two or three times that long to render it really tender, but I was in a hurry so it was a little chewy. Mr. Delightful suggested I loosen the purse strings next time and get a tender cut of beef and cook it briefly. Hmph! What a spendthrift!

But the sauce was lovely. I just sort of made it up as I went along and wrote it down in case I wanted to make it again. And I do! I seem to recall using wide egg noodles in the past, but I used fettuccine this time. How about you? Are you a Stroganoff fan? 

Beef Stroganoff / www.delightfulrepast.com


Beef Stroganoff

(Serves 2)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper, divided
2 tablespoons (1 ounce/28 grams) unsalted butter
4 ounces (113 grams) mushrooms, sliced
8 ounces (227 grams) 3x3/8-inch strips of lean "stir-fry" beef
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon dried tarragon
Pinch allspice
Pinch nutmeg
1 1/2 cups (12 fluid ounces/355 ml) lower sodium beef broth, divided
6 ounces (170 grams) dried fettuccine
1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (4.25 ounces/120 grams) sour cream

1 Heat olive oil in skillet, and cook onion until softened, about 5 minutes, seasoning with about 1/8 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Pour into 1-quart bowl. Add 1 tablespoon butter to skillet, and cook mushrooms until tender, about 5 minutes, seasoning with about 1/8 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Add to onions in bowl. 

2 Add 1 tablespoon butter to skillet and increase heat to medium-high. Add beef strips to hot pan and cook until well-browned, seasoning with about 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper and the paprika, tarragon, allspice and nutmeg. Stir in 1 1/4 cups of broth, deglazing pan. Cover and simmer over low heat for 40 minutes, or until tender.

3 After 10 minutes, in 3.5- to 4-quart pan, put 2 quarts of water, salted with about 1/2 teaspoon of salt, on to boil. When the water comes to a boil, stir in the fettuccine and cook for as long as indicated on the package.

Note: I used my gorgeous Le Creuset 3.5-quart tri-ply stainless steel saucier so I could serve it right in the pan. 

4 Meanwhile, shake together the flour and remaining 1/4 cup broth until smooth. Stir it into the beef and broth. Stir in the onions and mushrooms. Continue simmering until the fettuccine has been cooked and drained. 

5 Stir the sour cream into the beef mixture, then pour the Stroganoff into the fettuccine and toss until combined. Serve immediately.

41 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's hard to find tender beef nowadays, even for good money. I use meatballs in my Stroganoff: ground beef; milk; bread crumbs; parsley. But any recipe would do here.
Problem solved.

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Anonymous, I'm with you on that. But I grew up with a father who wouldn't eat ground beef very often (almost never), so we always had stroganoff with steak. I'd be just as happy with the meatballs myself. Thanks!

Thomas "Sully" Sullivan said...

Oh, yes, we can be sure of that. Stroganoff…stroganoff…stroganoff! One of my few specialties. People are carted away from my table after being unable to stop downing plate after plate of a glut of stroganoff I have made to last several days. Not much of an exaggeration there. It’s a secret recipe. I refuse to divulge it because it sounds and is unspectacular. But as with anything that’s cooked well, I believe success depends more on the intangible handling of preparation than on formulae set down on paper. But I do use brown rice instead of noodles, and the sauce is a creamy mushroom one (lots of mushrooms) and soy figures in, and one magnificent sweet onion. And – most important – it must be eaten with a chaser at every bite – a sweet pickle sliced micro thin. It tastes almost as good cold as it does hot. And the Old Salt (aka your husband) is right…you can’t scrimp on the cut of beef, which must be tenderized additionally before cooking. Hie me to a market!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Sully, I'm so glad to learn you do cook yourself a decent meal once in a while! I love it with lots of mushrooms, too. I used too much pasta on this batch, but there was still plenty of sauce, so I was happy. I'll have to try it on brown rice next time (I always have brown rice on hand).

Angie's Recipes said...

I only made this with meatball before because my husband loves groundmeat. Yours looks really delicious, Jean.

Richard Sheppard said...

Yes! I'm a big fan. Though I haven't made the beef version for quite a while either. Lately, I've just been frying up some chicken breasts with a little flour. I usually make enough stroganoff sauce to cover the chicky, steamed broccoli, and rice. But back to the beef... My wife is terribly picky when it comes to beef. If it's even a little bit tough, she just won't eat it so I usually grill a filet and slice it thin over a bed of egg noodles covered in sauce. So good!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thanks, Angie! "Loves ground meat, hates ground meat" -- these picky men!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Richard, that sounds wonderful! I'm just imagining my sauce over chicken, broccoli and brown rice ... mmm. And I'll probably have to use filet for my husband, so there's not the least bit of "chewy" to the beef.

Julie's Lifestyle said...

Hi Jean, my mom used to make this when we were little. Thanks for sharing this recipe to make it!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thanks, Julie. Just call me "Mom"! -- I said it was retro!

Linda Kay said...

Jeanne, since it's just about my supper time as I write this, you are making me really hungry, and I kind of doubt I can get beef stroganoff here in Oklahoma.

The Cranky said...

My daughter and I love stroganoff; the Great Scot won't touch it. Leaves more for us, yum! I'm going to send the kidling over here for your recipe.

It might be retro, but good food is good food no matter the era.

Pom Pom said...

Tasty, I bet! I remember when I was a newlywed and an older-than-me friend brought over some stroganoff made with round steak, cream of mushroom soup (I know, but it was tasty), canned mushrooms and a packet of onion soup mix. I fell in love with that dish. So salty and good! Your recipe is much more pure!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thanks, Linda! Sounds like you're going to have to make it yourself then! I know they raise some beef in Oklahoma!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

That GS! I know, the things we do for our men -- there are things I haven't cooked in years because Mr. Delightful doesn't like them. But once in a while I just cut loose and make something just to suit myself!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thanks, Karen! Yes, more pure; but I must admit, I've tasted things friends have made with the dried and canned soups that were pretty tasty!

Unknown said...

So funny, my husband also enjoys beef stroganoff, but I don't make it either. Looks great!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thanks, GoodieGodmother!

Christine said...

I just had beef stroganoff last weekend at a restaurant. Despite the fact I love the stuff, I haven't had it in over a decade. Perfect timing on this one! Thank you!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thank you, Christine! So good to hear from you. I'll be visiting your site in a few days (working overtime is wrecking me!).

Unknown said...

Man, beef stroggie is one of my favorite dishes ever. Yum yum!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Hannah, thanks! Yeah, now I'm kicking myself for not making it for so long!

Mocadeaux said...

I love beef stroganoff! This would be a great "fancy" dish to serve company. Or, just make tonight for dinner!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thanks, Mo! Good idea!

Sippity Sup said...

I think you made the right choice with the beef. A little chewy equals flavor and the creamy sauce needs big flavor. GREG

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thanks, Greg! And I like the way you put that.

Pauline Wiles said...

I absolutely love Beef Stroganoff but it's ages since I've made (or eaten) it. I do remember, while I was at University, the college cafeteria used to make it with stewing steak. That was seriously bad news. Yours, of course, is a cut above!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Pauline, thank you. But *not* for reminding me of school food -- I have nightmares about that!

Brooks said...

Gah! I love Stroganoff, and I've not had it in years either. Yours inspires me to get on it, and I like the strip steak idea. I'll loosen up my wallet because I don't have purse strings.

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Too funny, Brooks! And I really prefer wide noodles or some other non-long pasta. Spaghetti and fettuccine are just too difficult to eat!

yung@foodyoo.com said...

Wow... this sounds so good. I love everything in this. The beef, the noodles with all the sauce. Great! Maybe garnish with some coriander or baked sesame. :)

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thank you, Yung! I do love coriander and sesame, too.

Swathi said...

Delicious, Jean, tender juicy beef with spagetti what more can we ask, thanks for sharing with Hearth and soul blog hop, pinning and tweeting and featuring on this week's hop

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Swathi, thank you! I do love pasta, and the sour cream in the sauce really tastes good with pasta. I so appreciate your social media shares as I'm a complete dunce when it comes to technical stuff!

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

That looks very yummy! It's been a long time since I made a dish like this and it's TIME! Thanks for the recipe! Hugs, Diane

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Diane, thank you so much! It's been a while since our "paths" crossed -- I've been working way too much the past few months!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Diane, thank you so much! It's been a while since our "paths" crossed -- I've been working way too much the past few months!

Anonymous said...

YUM!!! Way to rock it this week!! Thank you for linking up at the Creative K Kids’ Tasty Tuesdays! I have pinned your post to our Tasty Tuesdays Pinterest Board!! I hope to see you again this week! xo!

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Thanks, creatively. I sooo appreciate pins and shares because I am quite hopeless with those things myself!

Lea Ann (Cooking On The Ranch) said...

Jean, same here. It's been ages since I've made beef stroganoff. Pinning this one so I remember to fix that. Your recipe sounds really good and much better than I've made.

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Lea Ann, thank you so much! I hope you'll try it soon, though I'm sure you've made some pretty good stroganoff without my help! (Believe me, folks, Lea Ann knows her way around the kitchen!)