Friday Food : Recipe for Beef Stroganoff

Hi folks. Sorry I didn't manage to write thie recipe for you yesterday as promised. My mother-in-law has an operation and she needed some help. It's her birthday today as well, so there were a few things that needed to be done.

The beef stroganoff originates from Russia. Beef is a favoured meat in Russia and so far, the Russian dishes I have tasted so far have been delicious. My version of the recipe is based on the traditional recipe, but I have added a few ingredients which are not staples of the Russian cuisine. Nevertheless, it tastes sooo good. I usually serve mine with plain boiled or steamed rice, or with unfilled pasta like penne, macaroni, spaghetti or tagliatelle. I know it's a mixture of two completely different cuisines but, hey, it's a starch.

With this recipe, I will give some measurements because the proportions do matter, unlike most of my recipes. But, you can always adjust this to your taste.

So..

What you need:

• 1 pound of beef -  fillet of beef or sirloin works best. however, other thin and tender cuts may be used as alternatives.
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp minced ginger
• 1 tbsp mustard - I use Dijon mustard becauseit is mild and you taste it rather than feel it, if you knw what i mean!
• 1 1/2 cups of water
• 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp black pepper
• salt to taste
• 8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 cup soured cream
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• vegetable oil

What you do:

• Heat the oil in a saucepan.
• In the meantime, slice the beef into thin strips.
• Season the flour with some of the black pepper and a salt.
• Toss the beef strips in the seasoned flour and ensure the strips are completely covered in flour.
• Brown the floured beef strips. Be careful not to allow the flour to stick to the bottom of the pan.
• Add the mustard, garlic, ginger and onion. cook mixture for a few minutes.
• Add the water, worcestershire sauce and the remainder of the black pepper and salt if required. Stir thoroughly and bring tothe boil.
• Cover saucepan and cook until the meat is tender. You will notice that the gravy will have thickened. This is because of the flour you dredged the meat in at the start. I like to have a decent amount of gravy with my rice, so I don't let it dry out at this stage.
• Add the mushrooms and stir into the beef. Cook until the mushrooms are tender and have shrunk a little.
• When you are ready to serve, add the soured cream, mix throughly, cover and cook over medium heat for a minute or two.
• All done. Serve and enjoy.