Here I’ll show you the easiest and most delicious way to make a classic Beef Stroganoff!
I’ve tested the living daylights out of this recipe to ensure the end result is a gorgeous, creamy stroganoff that’s packed with flavour. Better still, it’s incredibly quick and easy to make! Follow me…
Beef Stroganoff Ingredients
There are a few variations of this dish, but the bulk of the ingredients are fairly universal. It’s more about the technique and the quantities of each ingredient. Let’s take a look at why we’re using each ingredient:
- Beef – you don’t have to use an expensive cut. I typically use rump or sirloin because they’re both cheap. Ribeye also works nicely.
- Mushrooms & Onion – these both bulk out the dish and add flavour.
- Garlic – pairs nicely with the beef and the creamy sauce.
- Butter – for frying the onion/mushrooms.
- Flour – to create a roux to thicken the sauce.
- Stock – this makes the bulk of the sauce.
- Cream – double/heavy cream helps create a gorgeous, rich and creamy sauce.
- Sour Cream – this is a classic addition in Stroganoff and helps balance the richer flavours.
- Worcestershire Sauce – deepens the beefy flavour.
- Dijon Mustard – adds a gentle warmth which helps balance the flavours of the sauce.
How to Prepare Beef Stroganoff
Prepping the beef is really simple. There are just a few tips to consider to bring out the best in the beef.
Tips for preparing the beef
- Remove fat – because the beef is sliced so thinly and fries so quickly, you won’t have time to render out any large bits of fat. As such, you’ll want to remove it.
- Pat dry – patting the beef dry before you fry it is important to remove moisture, which in turn, would cause the beef to steam instead of fry. This prevents the beef from browning and developing flavour.
Tips for frying the beef
- High heat – to get a nice crust on the beef without drying it out, you’ll want to fry over a high heat.
- Quick – because the beef is thinly sliced, it’ll cook very quickly. Just be vigilant so it doesn’t overcook!
- Batches – spreading the slices out in the pan is important so they all get direct contact with the pan and don’t all steam. As such, you’ll likely need to fry in two batches.
Process shots: slice beef (photo 1), pat dry then season (photo 2), fry in batches (photos 3&4).
Beef Stroganoff Sauce
The sauce starts where the beef ends – all that fond in the pan that’s left from frying the beef? That’s bonus flavour just waiting to be used! When you fry the onions, the moisture they release will help lift up all the flavour.
Just like the beef, it’s important to get a nice brown crust on the mushrooms too, just to maximise their flavour. Try and make sure each slice gets direct contact with the pan to encourage some caramelisation.
Process shots: melt butter (photo 1), fry onion (photo 2), fry mushrooms (photo 3), fry garlic (photo 4), stir in flour (photo 5), add stock (photo 6).
Two things to note as you create the sauce:
- Whisk – as you pour in the stock, just make sure you give it a good whisk to ensure no lumps form.
- Room temp – keeping the sour cream at room temp before you add it is really important. Otherwise, you risk it curdling.
You’ll want the sauce at your desired consistency before you add the beef back in. The beef is cooked, so you don’t want to simmer it any longer than you need to, otherwise it’ll overcook and go chewy.
Recipe Tip
Making sure you’re using fall-fat sour cream and double/heavy cream is important to ensure you end up with a nice, rich sauce. Using low-fat sour cream can also increase its chance of curdling too.
Process shots: whisk stock (photo 7), add sour cream, double cream, Worcestershire sauce and Dijon (photo 8), stir and simmer (photo 9), stir in beef (photo 10).
How to Serve Beef Stroganoff
Once everything is combined, you’ll want to serve right away. The longer it sits, the thicker the sauce will get (plus you risk overcooking the beef). From there, I love adding some fresh chives for a final pop of colour and flavour.
To serve, I typically go down 1 of 3 routes:
- Mash – whip up some Mashed Potatoes and pour it over (my favourite option).
- Bread – simply serve with some buttered crusty bread.
- Rice or Pasta – serve it poured over some cooked rice or pasta.
Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for this beef stroganoff shall we?!
How to make Beef Stroganoff (Full Recipe & Video)
Beef Stroganoff
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Equipment
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Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
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Kitchen Roll/Paper Towels (to pat beef dry)
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Large Pan & Wooden Spoon
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Jug (for stock)
Ingredients
- 500g / 1lb Steak, preferably close to room temp (see notes)
- 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
- 1 medium White Onion, thinly sliced
- 250g / 9oz Chestnut Mushrooms, sliced (not too thin)
- 2 cloves of Garlic, finely diced
- 2 tbsp Plain Flour
- 360ml / 1 1/2 cups Beef Stock
- 120ml / 1/2 cup Double/Heavy Cream, at room temp
- 60ml / 1/4 cup Sour Cream, at room temp (see notes)
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 tsp Dijon Mustard
- Veg Oil, as needed
- Salt & Black Pepper, to taste
- finely diced Fresh Chives, to serve
- Pasta, Rice or Mash, to serve (see notes)
Instructions
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Slice off any large bits of fat from the beef, then thinly slice the meat, cutting any wide slices in half. Pat dry with kitchen paper, then generously season all over with salt and pepper.
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Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Once it’s nice and hot, add half the beef slices and quickly spread them out so each has direct contact with the pan. Leave to fry for 1 minute, then flip them over and fry for another minute. Remove and repeat with the second batch, adding a dash more oil if you need to. Don’t worry if they’re still a touch pink at this point. Remove the beef from the pan and set aside.
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Lower the heat slightly to medium-high and melt in the butter. Add the onion and fry for 2 minutes until it just about starts to soften. Add the mushrooms and fry for around 5 more minutes until lightly browned and most of the moisture in the pan has evaporated. The mushrooms will immediately soak up any liquid, then they’ll begin to release it. Add the garlic and fry for another 30 seconds.
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Stir in the flour, then gradually add the beef stock, stirring as you go to prevent lumps from forming. Stir in the cream, sour cream, Worcestershire sauce and mustard. Bring to a simmer and allow to gently bubble away until the sauce begins to thicken, around 5 minutes.
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Stir in the beef alongside the resting juices and simmer for 1 minute, then remove the pan from heat and check for seasoning. You only need to simmer long enough to re-thicken the sauce and warm the beef through.
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Serve with your carb of choice with a sprinkling of fresh chives.
Video
Notes
b) Sour Cream – it’s important to get the sour cream out of the fridge right at the start, as stirring through fridge-cold sour cream can sometimes cause it to curdle. It’ll likely split a little once added at first, but it will then come back together as you stir it.
c) Consistency – make sure the sauce is close to your preference before re-adding the beef. You don’t want to continue simmering the beef for too long as it can overcook.
d) Serving – I usually serve with Mashed Potato, but any carb should do the trick. If you’re doing rice or pasta, I generally do 75g/2.6oz per person. There should be plenty of sauce.
e) Cookbook– this recipe is featured in my debut cookbook ‘Comfy’.
f) Calories – whole recipe divided by 4 with no sides.
Nutrition
For more similar recipes check out these beauties:
- Steak and Creamy Mushroom Sauce
- Steak and Orzo
- Black Pepper Beef and Broccoli Noodles
- One Pot Creamy Beef Shells
- Swedish Meatballs
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