Beef Stroganov

BeefStroganov

Beef Stroganov is a Russian dish of sauteed beef served in a sauce made with smetana (soured cream), that is now popular all over the world, with considerable variations since it's early 19th Century origins! 

Stroganov served with buckwheat

The beauty of the dish is that it can be served with a whole variety of accompaniments

Stroganov served with fried potatoes

The dish is a classic, quick and easy to prepare......

Stroganov served with straw potatoes - the original way of serving! (I usually form the potato straws into a 'nest' and place on top of the Stroganov).

The original serving was with fried straw potatoes, or french fries.....it was quite basic, with just cubes (not strips!) of floured beef and a sauce prepared with mustard and broth, finished with a small amount of smetana. With no onions, nor mushrooms, and definitely no alcohol!

Stroganov served with rice

In England it is often served with rice, in the US with mashed potato!

For my recipe I prefer to use thinly sliced beef skirt (a tip - if you want it really thin, put the skirt into the freezer for 10-15 minutes before slicing!). I usually start by gently frying off slices of onions in a little butter, when softened I add sliced mushrooms; meanwhile I dust the strips of beef in seasoned flour (salt, freshly- ground black pepper, smoked paprika, and mustard powder).I remove the Onions and mushrooms from the griddle pan and turn up the heat. Add the beef strips, stir around to seal, and immediately turn the heat off! I then return the onions and mushrooms to the pan and add smetana to reach the desired consistency (wetter if serving with rice or mashed potatoes), stir to mix evenly, add a splash of cognac(!) and serve!

For an interesting twist, and a bit of showmanship, I serve the onions and mushrooms onto individual plates, before adding cognac to the sealed beef and flambe at the table!! The smetana, or a tomato paste, is "on the side".
And, of course........vodka!

However you serve it - enjoy it!


*I tend to use roughly equal amounts of beef, onion, and mushroom!