Beef Stroganoff

Some days I need to get dinner on the table fast.  But some days, particularly when it's cold or rainy outside, I like to take all day to slowly cook dinner.  There is something almost therapeutic about it. The house smells wonderful, feeding your senses with anticipation of what's to come.  And well, let's be honest, the taste is a great payoff.  The depth of flavor that you can achieve using only a few simple ingredients is truly remarkable.  This Beef Stroganoff is one of those heavenly meals.  I think it's my favorite of my slow cook meals.  Tender chucks of beef smothered in a creamy gravy like sauce served over egg noodles-  YUM!  I'm already looking forward to making it again.  We don't add mushrooms to because we're not fans of the fungi (hahaha).  But you certainly add them if you are!  I cook it in the oven but you can easily adapt it for a slow cooker or crock pot.  Or if you are like my friend Patty, you can be all Iron Chef like & use a pressure cooker to make this in a quarter (or less) of the time.  :)

 Ingredients:
1.5 lbs of Beef Roast (Eye Round, Top Round, Bottom Round), cut into 1/2" cubes
1 large onion, cut in half then sliced
5-6 Large Button Mushrooms, quartered (optional)
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
2-4 cups Beef Broth
8-10 oz Sour Cream
1/4- 1/2 cup Flour
2 tbsp Butter
2 tbsp Olive Oil
4 shakes of Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Paprika
Salt & Pepper, to taste
Fresh Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees (if cooking in the oven).  I usually buy the beef already cut up from the grocery store.  I've bought it labeled as Stew Meat & Extra Trim Lean Stew Meat, but I really think you could use just about any inexpensive type of beef roast for this cut into 1/2"-1" pieces. 

 Add the cut up beef to a large zip lock type bag.  Season the meat with garlic powder, salt & pepper.  Then add in 1/4- 1/2 cup of flour.  Seal the bag & shake to coat the beef pieces. 

 In a large skillet or dutch oven, heat the butter & olive oil over medium high heat. 

 When the butter is melted, add the floured beef in 1 layer.  Cook, searing the beef on all sides.  Be careful not to over crowd the pan.  You may need to do this in batches, depending on the size of your pan. 

Remove the beef from the pan & reserve.

 Lower the heat to medium & add the sliced onion.  Cook for a couple of minutes then add the minced garlic & mushrooms (if using).

 When the onion is tender, return the beef to the pan (and all the juices from it).  (Transfer to a crockpot, if using.)  Then add in 2 cups of the beef broth.  Stir to combine, using the spoon to scrape up all the bits from the bottom of the pan.  Cover the pot & place in the oven. 

 Cook at 300 degrees, checking about every 1 1/2 hours or so.  Each time you check it, make sure you scrape the bottom & edges of the pot & stir to incorporate it.  (In a crock pot, I cook it on low for about 4 hours then on high for about 2 hrs.)

 The sauce will reduce into a thick gravy while cooking.  If it gets too thick, add more broth a little at a time, slowly while stirring to incorporate.  After about 3.5- 4 hours of cooking I added in about 2 more cups of broth.  Then covered & continue to cook.

   Cook it until the meat is so tender that it starts to fall apart.  I usually cook it for a total of 6 hours.

 When the meat is tender, remove the pan from the oven & place on a burner over low- medium heat.  (Low, if using a crockpot.)

 Add in the sour cream, the worcestershire sauce & the chopped parsley.  I didn't really measure how much sour cream or worcestershire sauce, I just added to taste.  Stir to incorporate & adjust your seasonings, if needed.

 Serve over top of egg noodles & garnish with a little fresh parsley. 

 Oh my goodness this is sooooooo good!!

This recipe is 6-8 servings.