Each week as I write about recipes… you may have notice that I write about the memory that accompanies it. This Beef Stroganoff dish is anything but fancy, yet it’s taste will win anyone over!
This was one of my favorite dishes my mom would make growing up.
In high school, we had to make a meal for home ec. (“home Ec.” is a term that schools dropped… opting for “foods”) This was the recipe I did! I remember, making this and a “Pink Salad” (think cherry pie filling and whipping cream, haha) …not exactly “Iron Chef” stuff. Then again, so many family favorites are just that- the simple stuff that mom is able to get together in the middle of “crazy”. I don’t remember my grade, but remember being awfully proud of it, because I knew it taste good!
This is also a reason to NEVER buy hamburger helper… it’s just TOO easy to taste better than that.
Now… what did I think of the “dried” mushrooms… very cool how they worked, but fresh wins by far. Thanks to Leah for letting me experiment & if storage is an issue- dried are the way to go.
The side dish of green beans… Let’s talk. My grandmother would have started them in bacon (with a pinch of sugar) and let them cook till very soft and almost picked by the salt & sugar. We in the South didn’t want a crunch to our beans. THROW AWAY the Civil War of Vegetable cooking. It’s about Flavor! Teach yourself to get to know the RAW veggie, before you cook his personality away. Steaming on that Beef broth gave flavor, the squeeze of fresh lemon definately gave flavor, as did the salt.. but, you still kept the green bean favor that nature intended. NOW, to do this with a “canned” greenbean- won’t be the same. Nothing wrong with a canned one (I’ve helped make a thousand quarts in my day) but get fresh when you can.
So no one is winning a Culinary Award for this dish… but you might win a hug. And lets all talk about what or how to get this taste… minus a canned processed soup…. a rue w/ stock? Your idea….
My “Throw the hamburger helper out” Beef Stroganoff
(from my mom, Gwen Thomason)
1 pound of ground beef (yes, you could use beef tips or left over roast chopped)
1 onion
2-4 cloves of garlic (your taste… I like 4, but used 2 in the video)
*Salt and pepper to taste and brown all of the above.
1 can of Cream of Chicken (Hmm… trying to find substitute)
Mushrooms (if you like)
*take off heat
1 8oz Sour Cream (fold it in)
Serve over Egg Noodles
Try the Campbell’s Healthy Choice Cream of Mushroom soup. I’m sure they have a chicken too but since this is a beef dish. I’ve used it in the past for other dishes and it works out very good.
Good Idea… I know it sounds odd chicken w/ beef dish, but it is good
Very much so Peggy and I do it a few times a year. I was though very imeespsrd how this came up though! Actually a stroganoff I love making (when doing it from scratch is with deer meat instead of beef.
Made that post before watching to see you don’t want soup. I have seen some recipes use pureed butternut squash or pureed cauliflower. Pretty much and root vegetable.
Thanks very nice blog!
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Thank you Miriam, back when i was making this… it was so fancy, lol. i now know it’s NOT, but i also know – it’s GOOD!