Now that it’s officially Fall and the temps are finally under 100 degrees, it’s time to dust off our slow-cooker and indulge in more comfort food recipes.  We found this one in the book “Slowcook” and adapted it after researching some other beef stroganoff recipes online.  We love how the flavor turned out — rich and meaty — but the sauce was a little more thin and broth-y than we would prefer.  We talked about creative ways to thicken it up next time — saute the mushrooms before adding them to the pot or do something different with the flour — but concluded that the easiest solution is also the most obvious.  Next time we make it, we’ll put in less beef broth and that should do the trick.  As Homer Simpson would say, “S-M-R-T!”  Update:  We got a super smart tip from our good friends Paula and Matt — use cream cheese instead of sour cream.  Adds more flavor and might help thicken up the sauce.  Thanks Guys!

The ingredients include steak (we used two New York strips because our grocery store was out of sirloin), mushrooms, onion, garlic, beef broth, flour, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, cream of mushroom soup and salt & pepper.  We served the stroganoff over egg noodles, but it would also be good served over rice.

Slice the mushrooms into medium-sized slices.  You don’t want to slice them too thin, since they will be cooking all day.

Chop the onions.

Trim any visible fat from the beef and slice it into strips.

The original recipe called for 1/4 cup of flour, but one of the beef stroganoff recipes we found online recommended mixing flour with a little white wine.  We enjoy drinking cooking with wine, so we included this step in our stroganoff.

Another online recipe called for cream of mushroom soup, and we happened to have a can in our pantry so we added that too.

Combine all of the ingredients except for the sour cream in the slow-cooker pot.  When we make this dish in the future, we’ll only use half the can of beef broth to start, saving the rest of the can to add as needed if the liquid level in the pot gets too low.

Cover and cook the stroganoff on low for 8-9 hours.  (Stare at the slow-cooker timer for the first minute to make sure you set it correctly and it’s actually cooking.)

When there is about 15 minutes of cooking time remaining, uncover and spoon off any accumulated fat from the top.  Then add the sour cream, stir everything together and continue cooking on low for 15 minutes.  Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

When we saw that the sauce was thinner than we wanted, we attempted to thicken it up by mixing some cornstarch with water, adding that to the pot and cooking it on high for a few minutes.  Good idea in theory, but it didn’t really work.  Luckily, it didn’t mess up the flavor either, so no harm, no foul.

Cook the pasta (or rice) separately and drain.

Serve the stroganoff over the warm pasta (or rice.)  We loved the beefy, earthy flavor of this dish (even if it did require a spoon to eat) and will definitely make it again.   It’s also really really easy and relatively healthy.

Slow-Cooker Beef Stroganoff

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lb. steak (sirloin or similar cut of beef), cut into strips
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (8 ounce) container mushrooms, sliced into medium sized pieces
• 1 can beef broth, halved
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 tablespoon flour mixed with ¼ cup white wine
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon worcestershire
• ½ teaspoon salt (additional to taste)
• ¼ teaspoon pepper (additional to taste)
• 1 cup sour cream

Directions:

1. Combine half of the can of beef broth and all other ingredients, except for the sour cream, in the slow-cooker pot.
2. Cover the pot and cook on low for 8-9 hours.  Check the liquid level occasionally and add more beef broth as needed.
3. With 15 minutes of cooking time remaining, uncover and spoon off any accumulated fat from the top.  Add the sour cream and stir everything together.  Continue cooking on low for 15 minutes.
4. Serve over warm egg noodles or rice (cooked separately.)

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