Beef Stroganoff
Russian Classic
Ingredients
- 1 lbs Ground Beef
- 220-240 g Egg Noodles
- 450-550 g Mushrooms ( I like Cremini ) Sliced
- 2 Onions Sliced
- 1/2 C Red Wine Dry is better
- 1/2 C Beef Stock
- 1 C Sour Cream
- 1 tsp Nutmeg
- 3-6 Tbsp Butter
- 4-6 Tbsp Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper
Instructions
- Start by having all your ingredients chopped, portioned and ready to go beside your cooktop.
- Get a pot of water going for your Noodles and drop the Noodles right before you start cooking the Mushrooms. This way the Noodles will be finished just ahead of your Beef and ready to be mixed in.
- On to cooking... get your pan nice and hot. Throw a couple nobs of butter in the hot pan along with a Tbsp of Olive Oil. Add not more than half of the Mushrooms into the pan, toss to coat them in the Butter and let sit to brown. Make sure to season with Salt & Pepper to help pull out the water in the Mushrooms.
- After they have browned for 1-2 minutes remove them from the heat and repeat with the remaining Mushrooms. Remember to allow the pan to get hot before adding each batch of Mushrooms and season.
- Once the Mushrooms are done and in a bowl use the same technique with the Onions. Onions will burn quicker then Mushrooms so make sure to continually move the Onions around. Again don't forget to season when the Onions go in the pan and remove from heat when caramelized.
- Finally add the Ground Beef, continue to cook until cooked all the way through and any liquid has evaporated off. Seasoning as you go.
- Once the pan is dry with only the Beef left Deglaze with the Red Wine. Stir and allow the Wine to cook until almost dry again. Now add the Beef stock and simmer again until it has reduced by half.
- Add in the Sour Cream and Nutmeg and stir to incorporate.
- Finally decide how you would like to present your food. The down and dirty family method would be to add the Beef stew directly to the Noodles toss and serve. For a more personal approach place a portion of Noodles into a nice bowl and top with the Beef Stew in the middle. Garnish with some fresh Parsley.
Notes
There are two things that make a big difference in the final product:
- High heat, don't be afraid of heat here. With low heat you will end up with wilted Mushrooms and bland Beef. A Hot Hot pan with help to brown everything giving it that extra depth of flavour.
- Season season season. Every time you add something new to the pan add a pinch of Salt and Pepper. Trying to add S&P to food after it has finished cooking will not be as flavourful as seasoning while you're cooking. There is a reason top end restaurants don't have Salt & Pepper shakers on the Table.