Lets take a quick detour...
Anyone ever had real beef stroganoff?? No I'm not talking about the hamburger helper your mother used to make. I'm talking about the delicious tomato and cream based hearty goodness your Grandmother used to make. If you don't know what I'm talking about then sir/madam, you have been missing out on a wonderful thing.
I love cooking. There has always been a little flame inside of me waiting to realize that this is what i want to do for the rest of my life, serve great food and make people feel happy. So when i would come home from work, one of the highlights of my day would be deciding what i would make for everyone that night. Maybe a homemade pizza? A traditional Coq a Vin? What about a hearty Beef Stroganoff. Who wouldn't want to come home to that for dinner??
So Ive decided to share with you my take of stroganoff. No i don't have a recipe book with my grandmothers old recipes, but i do have my basic knowledge for what works and what doesn't.
I'm not going to baby you with my recipes. If you are reading this and know anything about cooking you know that you cook to taste. If you follow a set recipe and you are not baking then I'm afraid this blog is not for you my friend. Now onward to the Stroganoff!
First off, get one thing out of the way.
Boil off your egg noodles. Yes egg noodles. Easy to find (at my grocery store they are on the bottom row with the dried pasta). I believe mine took 8-10 minutes or al dente to your standards. Everyone knows how to cook pasta so don't be silly. Just make sure when you strain the noodles to mix in some olive oil to make sure the noodles do not stick together and form a massive noodle glob. Yuck.
Now to the meat.
Start off with any meat you feel comfortable slicing in small strips. For this time i used some leftover cuts off a beef tenderloin. (God i loved working in a kitchen, hows that for scraps??)
Slice the meat into small, somewhat thin strips.
While your doing this make sure you have a pan ready (oiled or buttered) for searing said meat.
Coat your strips in some flour and drop them in the pan. Simple no?
When they start to bleed a little its time to flip them over. Don't over cook them though. No one likes rubbery meat!
Now once this process is finished set the meat somewhere to sit for moment. Just keep it warm.
To the sauce!
So, this is my method of beef stroganoff. If you have a different method than great. Everyone cooks in different ways.
Take that pan you had used before and oil or butter it up again for a nice portion of sliced button mushrooms and chopped garlic. Saute said shrooms down until somewhat soft. Now the fun! Add some Burgundy to the mix and listen! Did it hiss when it hit the pan? Good, your doing it right :).
After you have deglazed the pan with your Burgundy add about a cup of water and a beef bullion cube. Your mushrooms should still be floating around in your beefy alcoholic mixture.
Now is when you can add your spices. For mine, i stayed simple. Salt and pepper (White pepper), a little cayenne, some oregano and a bay leaf for fun.
After your spices are in, start to add your tomato paste. Start off in small amounts so you can monitor the taste. You don't want it too tomatoey. At this point your expected to season to taste as well. Finish off the sauce with some sour cream. As much as suits you, i use a lot but it will help finish off your sauce.
Last but not least, the beef! Add the beef back to your wonderful sauce and toss to coat.
Now if you prefer your sauce thicker might a recommend a slurry. What is a slurry?? Simply put, flour and water together used as a thickener in soups and sauces. Just whisk it right in and let it simmer a little and you will be fine.
Plate your food however you like, I'm not your mommy. Maybe even make some garlic toast like me? Mmm ukrops white house rolls are the best for a simple garlic toast.
End Result??
Hopefully something like this.
Enjoy :)
Angela & Hazelnut
