- 1 large onion
- 4-5 T butter
- 2 lbs mushrooms, chopped
- 1 heaping T flour
- 3 heaping T sour cream
- 2 lbs well-marbled beef tenderloin
- salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- The most important thing to remember is that all the ingredients must be
at room temperature. Even the sour cream should be left outside the
refrigerator for a few hours before the dish is started; it won't turn
too sour no matter how hot the day.
- Several hours before the dish is to be served, slice the onion very thin
and fry it gently in 2 T butter. Fry the chopped mushrooms separately in
2 T butter. When both are soft, combine them, sprinkle with flour, and
mix well. When the mixture has cooled, gently stir in 3 heaping T sour cream.
Let this mixture sit at least 2 hours; all afternoon if you prefer.
- Approximately 1 hour before the dish is to be served, start cutting the
meat with a well-sharpened knife, in thin strips lengthwise, then crosswise
to make pieces 2" - 3" long. For this, it helps if the tenderloin is partially frozen in advance.
When the meat is cut, and 20 minutes prior to the serving of the dish, put
the sour cream - mushroom - onion mixture to heat gently in a double boiler
of hot but not boiling water. While it reheats, fry the meat strips rapidly
in 1 or more T butter. The butter should be hot but not burning. Keep
turning the meat with a spatula until it stops giving off juice (5-10
minutes). Remove it from the fire and allow it to cool for a few minutes before stirring it into the reheated sour cream - mushroom - onion combination. Add
the juices from the pan and salt and pepper to taste. If there is not enough
gravy, allow the mixture to cool a little, stir in additional sour cream, and reheat the dish gently before serving. Serve hot with rice on the side. Serves 6.
 Adapted from The Russian Cookbook by Barbara Norman, this recipe makes the best Stroganov both she and I have ever tasted.
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