Name: Beef Stroganoff
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Russian-European
Ingredients: 500 g beef fillet tips (cut into thin strips); 2 tbsp plain flour (1 tbsp for coating the meat, 1 tbsp for the sauce); 2 tbsp clarified butter (Butterschmalz) or ghee (for frying); 2 onions or shallots (in thin half-rings); 1 clove garlic (finely chopped); 400 g button mushrooms (thinly sliced); 4 medium gherkins (pickled) (in strips); 300 ml beef stock; 50 ml dry white wine (optional); 250 g sour cream (Schmand); 1 tsp mustard (medium hot); 0.5 tsp sugar; salt and white pepper; 1 bunch parsley (chopped)

Preparation

Cut the meat into thin strips about 0.5 to 1 cm thick and no more than 5 cm long, and toss in 1 tbsp of the flour. Cut the onions into thin half-rings, slice the mushrooms thinly and cut the gherkins into slightly thicker strips.
Heat the clarified butter in a large, deep pan until very hot, sear the meat strips briefly and fiercely in batches, remove and keep warm. Briefly fry the onions and garlic in the pan fat and remove them as well.
Fry the mushrooms in a little fat, add the onions and gherkins. Dust with the remaining flour and cook briefly.
Deglaze with the stock and, if you like, the white wine and simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes.
Stir a few spoonfuls of the hot sauce into the sour cream so it doesn't curdle, then stir the sour cream in. Season with mustard, salt, sugar and pepper.
Return the meat with its juices to the pan and let it sit for just 1 more minute. Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately with boiled potatoes, rice or ribbon pasta.

Drink with it

Red wine · excellent match
Spätburgunder or Pinot Noir
Fine acidity and wild berry fruit cut through the sour cream sauce, earthy notes meet the mushrooms, and low tannin keeps the fillet tasting tender.
Which wine pairs with food? A simple approach to choosing
White wine · good match
Dry white wine, e.g. Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris) or Chardonnay
Fresh acidity and a round body carry the cream sauce without overpowering the tender meat.
Vodka · good match
Vodka, ice cold from the freezer, neat in a small glass
The cold cuts the creamy richness of the sour cream and meat, and the neutral taste lets mushrooms and gherkins speak.
What Is Vodka? Raw Materials, Flavor, and Cocktails
Dark beer · good match
Munich Dunkel
Malty bread-crust notes suit the seared beef and mushrooms, and the carbonation loosens the sour cream.
Which beer goes with food? More than just pils with barbecue

Why it pairs well

Ice-cold vodka with a cream sauce is common in Russia, though hardly known elsewhere: cold and neutrality make the heavy sauce feel lighter.

Preparation

Cut the meat into thin strips about 0.5 to 1 cm thick and no more than 5 cm long, and toss in 1 tbsp of the flour. Cut the onions into thin half-rings, slice the mushrooms thinly and cut the gherkins into slightly thicker strips.
Heat the clarified butter in a large, deep pan until very hot, sear the meat strips briefly and fiercely in batches, remove and keep warm. Briefly fry the onions and garlic in the pan fat and remove them as well.
Fry the mushrooms in a little fat, add the onions and gherkins. Dust with the remaining flour and cook briefly.
Deglaze with the stock and, if you like, the white wine and simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes.
Stir a few spoonfuls of the hot sauce into the sour cream so it doesn't curdle, then stir the sour cream in. Season with mustard, salt, sugar and pepper.
Return the meat with its juices to the pan and let it sit for just 1 more minute. Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately with boiled potatoes, rice or ribbon pasta.

Drink with it

Red wine · excellent match
Spätburgunder or Pinot Noir
Fine acidity and wild berry fruit cut through the sour cream sauce, earthy notes meet the mushrooms, and low tannin keeps the fillet tasting tender.
Which wine pairs with food? A simple approach to choosing
White wine · good match
Dry white wine, e.g. Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris) or Chardonnay
Fresh acidity and a round body carry the cream sauce without overpowering the tender meat.
Vodka · good match
Vodka, ice cold from the freezer, neat in a small glass
The cold cuts the creamy richness of the sour cream and meat, and the neutral taste lets mushrooms and gherkins speak.
What Is Vodka? Raw Materials, Flavor, and Cocktails
Dark beer · good match
Munich Dunkel
Malty bread-crust notes suit the seared beef and mushrooms, and the carbonation loosens the sour cream.
Which beer goes with food? More than just pils with barbecue

Why it pairs well

Ice-cold vodka with a cream sauce is common in Russia, though hardly known elsewhere: cold and neutrality make the heavy sauce feel lighter.

Beef Stroganoff

Preparation

Drink with it

Spätburgunder or Pinot Noir

Dry white wine, e.g. Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris) or Chardonnay

Vodka, ice cold from the freezer, neat in a small glass

Munich Dunkel

This pairs well too.

Albóndigas in Tomato Sauce (Spanish meatballs)

Beef Enchiladas with Red Sauce

Beef Fillet with Mushroom Cream Sauce

Beef Rouladen

Beef Stroganoff

Preparation

Drink with it

Spätburgunder or Pinot Noir

Dry white wine, e.g. Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris) or Chardonnay

Vodka, ice cold from the freezer, neat in a small glass

Munich Dunkel

This pairs well too.

Albóndigas in Tomato Sauce (Spanish meatballs)

Beef Enchiladas with Red Sauce

Beef Fillet with Mushroom Cream Sauce

Beef Rouladen