This easy creamy Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff Recipe uses beef tenderloin, mushrooms and onions in a rich sour cream gravy.
How to Make Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff Recipe with Sour Cream
This Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff has been one of those recipes I revisit again and again. Maybe because to me it’s comfort food par excellence. Or maybe because it’s a simple dish with simple ingredients and very inexpensive to make, especially if you are feeding a large crowd.
Or maybe because it’s humble enough to stand on its own within culinary circles.
Here in the midwest, I grew up eating this dish prepared by my mom and later I prepared this for my family. I used the old standby of cream of mushroom soup, as I hadn’t yet mastered making a roux at that time.
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But over the years, I’ve altered this recipe to what it is now and am happy with the results.
Sure, it’s been a long time coming, so I hope you’ll agree that this version of the recipe is worth the wait.
DID YOU KNOW? The origin of Beef Stroganoff goes back to the 1800’s in Russia. Just like today, its star ingredient is sour cream, which replaces cream for the sauce.
Three Steps to Perfect Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff
From my experience there are three important steps to making Beef Stroganoff. And, they are:
Buy the “Right” Kind of Beef
The first important step is to buy the “right” kind of beef. I like purchasing a beef tenderloin, although I have been known to use a chuck roast in a pinch.
Why beef tenderloin? Well, the answer is simple: the meat cooks up tender, especially when you cut it into one inch cubes.
I like to throw all of these chunks into a gallon storage bag with some herbed flour and shake it until the beef tenderloin is fully coated.
Then, carefully removing the chunks by straining it through my fingers, I place the floured meat into a bowl and discard the leftover flour and gallon bag.
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To cook the beef, you’ll need a good sturdy but deep fry pan. You need to heat it to just smoking before you add some vegetable oil or olive oil.
Then, working in batches, carefully add the beef chunks to the hot oil and cook until the outer surface is golden brown. Remove the cooked meat and repeat until all the beef has been cooked.
Each batch should take a couple of minutes. The trick here is to not overcrowd the pan, otherwise you will steam your beef and it won’t have that yummy crust on the outside.
You’ll also want to use a slotted spoon to rotate the beef so that all sides get browned.
Best Wine Pairing with Beef Stroganoff – For this Beef Stroganoff recipe, you can’t go wrong with a Pino noir, Burgundy, Chianti, Sirah, or even a Cote du Rhone.
Once cooked, strain the beef bits and place them in a heatproof bowl. Set aside.
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Use Fresh Mushrooms
For this traditional Beef Stroganoff recipe, I love to add a variety of mushroom types, from crimini to shitaaki to baby bellas—you get my drift. I’ve also used dried mushrooms and reconstituted the melange of mushrooms using both the rehydrated mushrooms, along with the strained juices for a most delectable taste that cannot be beat.
But if you need quick and easy, then slice a couple of cups of your favorite fresh mushrooms and sauté these with chopped onions in the same skillet with the leftover vegetable oil that you cooked the beef just moments before.
Sauté these ingredients until they are softened. Scoop into a bowl. Set aside.
Skip the Canned Soup
As mentioned above, when I first made this recipe I used canned soup as my “gravy,” but once I discovered that I too could make a rich gravy sans (without) canned assistance, well, be still my culinary heart, I never looked back.
The gravy is in effect a darkened roux that is made with butter and flour that has been cooked to a golden brown.
And, just at that point when you think it might be burning, you drizzle in the milk and whisk away until all the milk has been incorporated into the now milky roux that’s silky smooth.
Assemble the Ingredients
As you can see thus far, this recipe is pretty straight forward. And, now it’s time to assemble the recipe.
Add the beef and sautéed mushrooms and onions to the cooked roux. Stir well. Then, add about a cup or so of beef stock and again, stir well.
Next, add salt and pepper, as well as the Hungarian sweet paprika, garlic and onion powder and cayenne pepper.
Allow everything to cook through and if you find that the gravy is getting too dry, add a little more beef stock, about a 1/2 cup at a time. Remove the pan from the heat.
Finally, add the sour cream. You do this at the last moment because sour cream has the propensity to separate if the sauce is too hot.
Stir well and it’s done.
In all, this recipe takes about 40 minutes or so. Serve it over cooked egg noodles. Garnish with parsley. And be sure to have crusty bread at the ready for sopping up the extra sauce. Enjoy!
For more delicious beef dishes like this Easy Creamy Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff, be sure to check out Wisconsin Homemaker’s Recipe Section.
Easy Creamy Beef and Mushroom Stroganoff
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil more if needed
- 1 1/2 lb beef tenderloin sliced then quartered, approximately 1 inch pieces
- 2 cups mushrooms sliced
- 1 cup yellow onion finely chopped
- 2 cups beef broth more if needed
- 8 tbsp butter
- 1/4 cup flour all purpose
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp Hungarian Sweet Paprika
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp dry mustard
- ½ cup sour cream
- 12 oz egg noodles
- Fresh parsley chopped (for garnish)
Instructions
- Cook the egg noodles according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- Then, in a large skillet, heat it on Medium High Heat until almost smoking.
- Next add 3 teaspoons of vegetable oil and add the beef tenderloin to the oil. Be careful the oil is very hot. Also, don’t crowd the pan. If you have to, do a couple of batches until the beef chunks are browned.
- Once cooked, spoon into a bowl. Set aside.
- Re-oil the skillet and add the mushrooms and onions, sauté until they are softened. Place in a bowl and set aside.
- Melt eight tablespoons of butter and stir in 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour. Cook on medium-medium high heat and stir constantly until the flour is lightly golden brown.
- Add the cooked mushrooms and onions, along with the spices and broth, except the sour cream. Stir well.
- Add the cooked beef and then the sour cream. Simmer the Stroganoff until thickened, approximately 5 minutes.
- Place the egg noodles in a large bowl and spoon the Stroganoff over the top.
- Garnish with chopped parsley. Serve. Enjoy!
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