Katie's Kitchen: Beef Stroganoff

 

 Beef Stroganoff

 

Growing up, Beef Stroganoff was always a go to, family favorite meal. Although this is my Aunt Rochelle's recipe, my mom loved making it. She loved it because it is easy to make and, if you add peas like my mom and Aunt did, it is a one pot meal.

In my family, we always used ground beef, although I later learned that others make it with stew meat. Since I grew up with ground beef, it is my favorite way to make it. Another thing with using ground beef is that you substitute ground chicken or turkey if you want to try to make it healthier. (Just be sure to add more seasoning to help the chicken/turkey.)

Another thing to note is about the peas. Yes you can leave them out, but why, they are yummy in the dish. The only thing is that the peas either need to be fresh or frozen. Do not try to make it with canned peas as they will be too mushy in the dish.

First step is to gather your ingredients. Next, get your pot on the stove to heating the water to cook the noodles. Add some salt to the water. Do not add the noodles until the pot is boiling. You can continue to cook the rest of the dish while waiting for the pot to boil. Once it is boiling, add the noodle, stir to make sure they are not all stuck together. Set a timer for 10 minutes. When the timer goes off, drain the noodles.

 

Now, on with the sauce. In big skillet, add the olive oil and brown the ground beef.

 

If your beef is in one big chunk, use a spoon to break it up into smaller pieces. While it is browning, add the bouillon cube to the 1 cup hot water to dissolve.

Once the beef is browned, remove the excess fat, add the can of cream of mushroom soup and water/beef bouillon. Stir until incorporated. Add mushrooms (and stir). Let this simmer until hot again. Now add Worcestershire sauce and sour cream. Stir and heat until hot again. When hot, add peas. Incorporate the peas and heat back up. Add salt and pepper to taste.

If you are trying to be fancy, then place the noodle on a plate and then add a couple of big spoonfuls of the meat sauce over the noodle. However, if this is for family, then just add the noodles to the skillet of sauce and carefully stir until the sauce coats all the noodles.

 

I strongly recommend serving this with a nice crusty loaf of french bread and let people use the bread to soak up all that yummy sauce. 

I always looked forward to visiting my Aunt Rochelle and her husband, Uncle Chris. Not only because she would make this yummy dish, but because all the fun times and terrible (and funny) dad jokes Uncle Chris is known for. For example, he always called this dish, "Self-pleasuring Bovine." I will admit, I didn't get the joke until I was in my teens. I just remember my dad snickering when he said it and my mom scolding him for saying such a thing in front of the kids. 

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Beef Stroganoff

 

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup

1 (4oz) can sliced mushrooms, drained
1/2 cup sour cream
1 pound ground beef
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cube beef bouillon
1 cup water
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
8 ounces egg noodles, dry
1 cup frozen peas

Directions:

1. Cook pasta per directions. Drain.
2. Add olive oil to skillet and brown the ground beef. Remove excess fat.
   
3. Once the beef is browned, add the can of cream of mushroom soup and water/beef bouillon. Stir until incorporated. Add mushrooms (and stir). Let this simmer until hot again. Now add Worcestershire sauce and sour cream. Stir and heat until hot again. When hot, add peas. Incorporate the peas and heat back up. Add salt and pepper to taste.
4. When the noodles are done and drained, add to the skillet and incorporate.