Russia · Meat Dishes · High protein

Beef Stroganoff

Name: Beef Stroganoff
Prep time: 26 min
Cook time: 59 min
Total time: 85 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Russian
Ingredients: 500 g beef, sliced into thin strips; 2 medium onions; 300 g mushrooms; 200 ml sour cream; 2 tbsp flour; 1 tsp mustard; for frying vegetable oil; 100-200 ml broth or water; for decoration dill or parsley; to taste salt and ground black pepper

A legendary Russian dish invented by Count Stroganoff. Thin strips of beef braised with mushrooms in a rich sour cream sauce.

85 min 440 kcal 4 serves Advanced💪High protein🇷🇺Russia★★★★★4.5· 6 reviews

Ingredients

ServingsMetric

500 gbeef, sliced into thin strips
2 mediumonions
300 gmushrooms
200 mlsour cream
2 tbspflour
1 tspmustard
for fryingvegetable oil
100 mlbroth or water
for decorationdill or parsley
to tastesalt and ground black pepper

Note from Sergei

Sergei Martynov

“Authentic Russian beef stroganoff has nothing to do with the mushroom-heavy, cream-laden casseroles you find in American cookbooks. The original St. Petersburg version is all about thin strips of tender beef, seared blazing hot in just 2-3 minutes, then finished with a tangy sour cream sauce. The number one mistake is adding the sour cream too early — it curdles at high heat. Pull the pan off the flame, let it cool for 30 seconds, then stir in the smetana. The beef should be sliced against the grain into matchstick-thin strips; if they're thick, you'll end up chewing through a tough stew instead of a refined Russian classic.”

Use beef tenderloin or sirloin, never stewing cuts. Freeze the meat for 20 minutes before slicing — it firms up and you get perfectly uniform thin strips every time.

Method

Slice the beef into thin strips about 5mm wide. For best results, the meat should be slightly frozen to make slicing easier.
Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan over high heat. Fry the meat in batches until well browned on each side but not dry. Set aside on a plate.
In the same pan, fry the finely chopped onion until golden, then add the sliced mushrooms and fry until done.
Return the meat to the skillet with the onions and mushrooms. Sprinkle with flour and mix thoroughly. Add sour cream, mustard (if using) and enough broth or water to reach the desired sauce consistency. Season with salt and pepper.
Cover with a lid and braise over low heat for 20-30 minutes, stirring periodically. Serve hot, sprinkled with fresh herbs, traditionally with mashed potatoes, porridge or boiled pasta.

FAQ

The most common cause is overcooking thin beef strips. Stroganoff uses quick-fry cuts like sirloin or tenderloin sliced 5–7 mm thick — they need only 1–2 minutes per side in a very hot pan. If you cook them longer or add them to a simmering sauce before searing, the proteins tighten and the meat becomes chewy. Always sear the beef in small batches in a smoking-hot pan with a thin layer of oil; overcrowding drops the temperature and causes steaming instead of browning. Remove the seared beef from the pan, make the sauce separately, and add the meat back only for the final 1–2 minutes of gentle warming — never boil it in the sauce.

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Comments (2)

Злой Повар
29d ago
Бефстроганов — русская классика, которую весь мир готовит неправильно. Мясо нарезается тонкими полосками и жарится на сильном огне 2-3 минуты, не больше. Кто тушит говядину полчаса в сметане — получает подошву в белом соусе. И сметана добавляется в самом конце, вне огня, иначе свернётся.
Sergei Martynov✍ Author
29d ago
Salt the beef at least 30 minutes before cooking beef stroganoff, or right before — never in between. Salt draws moisture to the surface; given 30+ minutes it reabsorbs. At 10 minutes, it's just sitting there making things wet.