Everything about Beef Stroganoff totally explained
Beef Stroganoff or
Beef-Stroganov (in
Russian: Беф-Строганов
Bef-Stróganov) is a
Russian dish of sautéed pieces of
beef served in a sauce with
sour cream. From its origins in 19th-century
Russia, it has become popular in much of
Iran,
Europe,
North America,
Australia,
South Africa, and
Brazil, with considerable variation in the actual recipe.
Recipes of
braised meats finished with sour cream are fairly typical of medieval Russian cookery.
Elena Molokhovets' classic Russian cookbook (1861) gives the first known recipe for
Govjadina po-strogonovski, s gorchitseju "Beef Stroganov with mustard" which involves lightly floured beef
cubes (not strips) sautéed, sauced with prepared
mustard and
bouillon, and finished with a small amount of sour cream: no
onions, no
mushrooms. A 1912 recipe adds onions and
tomato paste and serves it with crisp
potato straws, which are considered the traditional garnish in Russia. The version given in the 1938
Larousse Gastronomique includes beef
strips, and onions, with either mustard or tomato paste optional.
After the fall of
Imperial Russia, the recipe was popularly served in the hotels and restaurants of
China before the start of the
Second World War.
Russian and
Chinese immigrants, as well as U.S. servicemen stationed in pre-
Communist China, brought several variants of the dish to the
United States, which may account for its popularity during the 1950s. In the version often prepared in the USA today, it consists of strips of beef filet with a mushroom, onion, and
sour cream sauce and served over
rice or
noodles.
In Australia a recipe very similar to the common American recipe has become popular, generally served with rice.
Beef stroganoff is also very popular in Brazil and Portugal, under the name "estrogonofe" or "Strogonoff". The Brazilian variant includes dice or strips of beef (usually filet mignon) with tomato sauce, onions, mushrooms and heavy whipping cream. Stroganoff is also often made with strips of
chicken breast rather than beef. It is commonly served with crisp potato straws, as in Russia, but with the addition of white rice. Sometimes one can also see creative servings of
estrogonofe, such as a
pancake filling, or topping baked potatoes. It is so popular among Brazil's urban middle class that there are even fast-food chains (such as
Strogonophy's) dedicated to it in the food courts of many Brazilian
shopping malls. Many recipes and variations exist: with or without wine, with canned sweet corn, with
ketchup instead of tomato sauce, etc.
Stroganoff is also popular in
Sweden and
Norway. In Sweden, a common variant is
sausage stroganoff, which uses the domestic product
falukorv as a substitute for the beef. Beef stroganoff is however also a common dish.
It is very popular as a basic food service dish as it's very easy to produce in large quantities.
Name
Various explanations are given for the name, presumably derived from some member of the large and important
Stroganov family, perhaps
Alexander Grigorievich Stroganoff of
Odessa or a diplomat, Count
Pavel Stroganov. An 1890 competition is often mentioned, but both the recipe and the name existed before then.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Beef Stroganoff'.
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