Meemaw's Beef Stroganoff

Do you know the BEST thing about recipes?
You don’t have to follow them!

I was hungry for something different tonight, and I remembered how good Beef Stroganoff used to taste. So I looked at several recipes online, and then I made up my own version.

So here is my “non-recipe”…in picture form.

First, I sauteed some diced onion and garlic in about a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.

Then I added sliced Portabello mushrooms.

HELPFUL HINT: If you don’t have a bench scraper for moving diced and chopped veggies to the pot or pan…GET ONE! It’s SO much neater and easier and faster than grabbing them with your hands!

Another COOKING TIP: Sprinkle a little salt on those mushrooms and they will release their moisture really quickly so you won’t have to add more oil!!

Cook down the mushrooms and remove all of the mixture from the pan…and look at what’s left.
And it’s a GOOD THING! Like Chef Carla Hall says…”There is FLAVOR in the BROWN!”
It’s called FOND. And it’s the reason I HATE nonstick pans (except for eggs and omelets) because you don’t get fond in those non stick pans. Why? Because NOTHING sticks to them…Remember?!

The fond is EASY to remove…I’ll show you how in a minute…after I make MORE of it! (YUM!)

I sprinkled about a pound of ground beef with about two tablespoons of flour (a thickening agent) and I threw it all into that same pan,,,

And I browned the meat. I know the pan looks really dry but I wanted to see how much fat would begin to cook out of the ground beef. DON’T move the meat until it releases by itself. That’s when you know it’s time!

I pushed the meat to one side of the pan after it was browned and I drained off excess grease…And then the MAGIC happens!

Just add about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of red wine to that pan!!!

And as the wine evaporates, quickly use a scraper to scrape up all those brown bits…It works every time!

I let the wine reduce down to almost nothing in this case…It’s important to cook the “winey” taste out of a dish before you add more liquid.. Then I added a can of Beef Consomme to the pan. You could substitute several cups of beef broth or stock if you wish…but consomme is really rich tasting.

Then I also added a dash of Worcestershire sauce…

NOW…FOR THE NOODLES… Sorry…No Picture! (You will have to use your imagination on that!)
I let the beef and mushroom mixture sit while I boiled about 12 oz. of wide egg noodles in a separate pot. I only cooked them about 5 minutes and then drained them quickly to keep them rather firm since they would eventually be added to this skillet. COOKING TIP: I also added about 1 tablespoon of Beef Au Jus Flavor Base to the noodle water to add another layer of flavor.

And when the noodles were al dente and drained, I stirred about one cup of sour cream into the meat mixture in the skillet. Then I decided I needed to add some herbs to brighten up the flavor and the color…

SO I stepped outside and grabbed some flat leaf parsley to add to the final dish.

And YES…I can drink wine and use sharp knives at the same time! (Years of practice…with BOTH!)

I stirred in the sour cream…

And I finished cooking our side dish of fresh green beans… (Just cook al dente, drain well, sprinkle with kosher salt and add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and toss. People will ask you for your recipe–I promise!!)

And then I added the noodles to the meat mixture.

Here is the finished dish…You can add more sour cream or broth if you want to.

(I didn’t want to…and remember…this was MY creation!!)

So…after we ate first course (a large salad), we sat down to this…

Not bad for a Monday night dinner…

Would I change anything next time? (And yes…there will be a next time!)
YES…Next time I will add EITHER the red wine OR the Worcestershire sauce…but not both. Each one packs it’s own flavor profile, and I want to taste one or the other to see how it works alone.

That’s the beauty of recipes…I don’t follow them.
And YOU can NOT follow them too!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply