Recipe: Ground beef stroganoff

This is a childhood favorite of mine found in the cookbook that my mother gave my sister and me when we started out on our own. It contains pretty much every single recipe that she made on a regular basis. I'm not sure what I'd do without it.

There are lots of recipes out there for beef stroganoff that use various canned soups or flavoring packets. But, like the vast majority of recipes in my mom's cookbook, this one is from scratch. And it's so very easy.

You could obviously substitute beef tenderloin, which my mom sometimes used in place of ground beef; sirloin steak; stew beef; or some other cut of beef ... or even chicken or ground turkey. But I grew up eating the ground beef version. And when I make it now for my own family, I know everybody will come away from the table with full bellies.

A word of warning: This recipe does involve a pound of beef and a half stick of butter. But, everything in moderation, right? 

Parsley

Combine flour, salt and pepper. Melt butter in a skillet and brown the meat, turning often. If you are using a cut of beef, coat the meat in the flour mixture before you cook it. When I'm using ground beef, I throw it in after the beef has cooked a bit in the butter and has broken up a bit. Make sure you give it a good stir so it's all mixed together.

Once the meat is mostly browned, add the onions and garlic and saute until the onions are golden. Then add the mushrooms and saute until tender. Add 1/4 cup of water and stir to dissolve the brown bits in the bottom of the pan. Simmer for about 10 minutes if you're using ground beef or 20 minutes if you're using another cut of beef.

Just before serving, stir in the sour cream. Heat, but don't boil the mixture. Add milk if it gets too thick. Place the stroganoff on top of a bed of cooked rice or fluffy noodles. Sprinkle with some chopped parsley for color.

This makes 4 to 6 servings.