Ingredients: |
Ingredients: 1- can cream of chicken soup (Campbell's is the best)
1 - can cream of mushroom soup (Campbell's)
1 - 11/2 regular containers sour cream (Breakstone's is the best)
1-1/2 lbs. top round or other choice cut of beef tenderized - I always have them run it through the tenderizer twice.
1 - bag very wide noodles (No Yolks! dumplings do great)
1-3 cans mushroom stems/pieces (my additive, not Mom's....feel free to leave this out if you don't like mushrooms)
2 - ounces garlic juice, preferably pure (Howard's garlic juice is wonderful, if you like garlic add another 1/2 or 1 ounce)
2 - gallon ziplock bags
1-11/2 sticks butter
Meat coating mixture ratio - You may need more than the following, just keep the mixture the same!
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Remember, the better the ingredients the better the flavor.
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Directions: |
Directions:1 - can cream of chicken soup
1 - can cream of mushroom soup
1 - container sour cream
1 - 11/2 - pound top round (or other good cut of beef) tenderized twice (like cube steak)
1 - bag of wide noodles
1-3 - cans mushrooms (my additive, not Mom's so feel free to leave this out if you're not a mushroom fan)
2 - ounces garlic juice (preferably pure)
2- gallon zip lock bags
1-11/2 sticks butter
- All Purpose flour at a ratio of 3 tablespoons flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper. I always pre-mix about 12 tablespoons flour with the corresponding salt (2 teaspoons) and pepper (1 teaspoon) amounts in a gallon zip lock bag so I have plenty of coating for the meat and a little extra for gravy. I've also found this to be a less messy way to coat the meat.
Prepare the meat -
Trim excess fat and any gristle from the meat and cut in 2x3 inch strips about one quarter inch thick. Place meat in one of the gallon zip lock bags and pour in the garlic juice and seal to marinate - the longer the better. You can prepare the meat the night before and store in the refrigerator, turning occasionally to help the meat absorb the garlic.
Prepare the meat coating -
In the other zip lock bag, mix your flour, salt and pepper in the above stated proportions. Seal and shake the bag to mix together all the ingredients.
In an electric frying skillet (or whatever you have that you can easily control the heat) melt about 1/2 stick of butter. Reduce to lowest heat. Take the meat and put it in the bag of flour mixture, coating all sides of the meat. You'll have to use your hands to break apart the meat strips in the bag and ensure all pieces are completely coated When coated, place the meat in the electric skillet and cook until well done using the lowest heat necessary. I always add extra flour from the mixture bag while the meat is cooking to make gravy for later. I use some of the left over butter to continuously add to the frying pan to keep the meat and flour from sticking or burning. Turn the meat once when it is done and cook the other side. When the meat is cooked, increase the heat and then stir fry it a little more. It isn't unusual for some of the coating to come off the meat. When the meat is cooked to your satisfaction, reduce heat to warm and remove the meat from the frying skillet. Add about one cup of water into the electric skillet and increase heat to boiling, mashing up any bits of cooked flour. This should turn your water brown. Add the two cans of soup, stir well to mix and if necessary add a little bit of water to let the mixture boil, but be careful of adding too much water as it is hard to cook off the excessive water and watery stroganoff just doesn't taste as good. The consistency should be thick enough to coat the noodles and stick, not runny. Add the meat and any crumbs back into the electric skillet and let simmer for approximately 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Try and keep the meat completely submerged in the gravy mixture. Start cooking your noodles any time before this to have them ready. After approximately 20 minutes of gentle simmering, reduce heat further and add your container of sour cream (I always use about a container and a half, but I like sour cream!) to the skillet and stir very well, completely mixing the cream with the meat and gravy mixture. When the mixture is completely white with no visible brown, it's ready.
Spoon your stroganoff mixture onto the cooked noodles and enjoy, or to make it easier and ensure the left overs are just as delicious, I always pour my drained noodles into the electric skillet and mix well before serving. Refrigerate the left overs. The left overs are wonderful, rewarming in the microwave for approximately 5 minutes (a little less for smaller portions) at 40% power. It doesn't dry it out nor affect the taste if you reheat on the lower power. After your first time cooking this, you can adjust the garlic and sour cream to your own taste.
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Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: I'll share this sweet memory I have of my Mom with you all about this recipe. I was living in Roxboro where the dining choices were extremely limited at that time so I called Mom and asked her how to cook this dish. As I was writing it all down, Mom mentioned the amount of meat and then added "you can beat your meat if you want to". I immediately burst into a fit of uncontrollable laughter while there was dead silence on the other end of the phone. When I finally stopped laughing my Mom said in an even steady tone, "okay buster, you know what I meant". My Mom, never a prude, always kind hearted and loving. I always think of her when I cook this meal, and I hope when you cook it that you smile from your own sweet memory of her.
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This recipe for Hanna Dillard's Beef Stroganoff is from