E&C Holiday Cookbook 2023

Beef Stroganoff

My folks are from central Illinois and this was a recipe from my grandmother on my mom's side. Upfront, this is one dating back to the 1930's, so I'll provide that version, with some healthier adjustments here and there. Ingredients: 2.5-3 lbs steak 3/4 cup of chopped onion (we typically use sirloin) 1/2 cup flour 1 clove of garlic, minced Dash of pepper 2-14 ounce cans of beef broth 1/2 cup butter (or substitute in a healthier option) 4 Tbsp tomato paste (this is key as it gives it a unique flavor) 8 ounces of sliced mushrooms 1.5 cups sour cream (we typically use plain Greek yogurt and it tastes the same) Instructions: Start by cutting the steak into pieces (1.5 inches). Then roll the pieces into the flour/pepper and put in a bowl. In a large skillet, brown the meat in the butter (or substitute). As you're doing this and throughout the remainder of the recipe, you'll have to periodically scrape the bottom of the pan, as the flour/butter will start to "gunk up", but this helps in creating the overall sauce.

As the meat has begun to brown, add in the mushrooms, onion, and garlic.

Continue to brown until all is cooked. Then add in the tomato paste, and beef broth, and reduce to simmer and cover. Slowly cook for an hour and occasionally stir and scrape the bottom.

The next step is to add in the sour cream or Greek yogurt, but a special note:

At this point, you've got a choice to make depending on your available time. You can either continue to stir-in the sour cream/yogurt and serve over rice or noodles, or remove it from the heat and place in a freezer and reheat when you want it. We do the latter because it brings out the flavor more-(don't ask me why, it just does). If you decide to put it in the freezer, then hold off on adding in the sour cream or Greek yogurt and do that step when you bring it back out to reheat and finish.

Jay Anstine

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