beef stroganoff

 I have a confession to make:  I do not like beef stroganoff.  Why am I making it, and then advertising it, then?  My family is obsessed with it.  My husband, my mom, my kids, they all love the stuff.  I have a hard time stomaching the idea of making a sauce out of sour cream...blarg.  Sorry guys.  We also have struggled over the years making one that's comparable to a true stroganoff but dairy free for Nik, so we just don't have it very often.  It's the "what do we do with all of the leftovers?" meal.

That's where today's dreamy stroganoff comes from.  Let me tell you, as someone who has never liked the stuff much before, this recipe could convert me.  (It's probably the lack of hot melted sour cream sauce.  BLARG.)

Ingredient List:
- ground beef
- onions or shallots (I used shallots)
- mushrooms
- coconut milk
- vinegar
- wide ribbon noodles (I used egg-free, pictured below)
- bay leaves
- thyme
- salt
- pepper
- stock (I used chicken stock that I made, you can use any stock you prefer)
- worcestershire sauce
- Just Mayo (You could use any mayo you want...you're using very little.  Just May is egg-free.)

I almost never measure when I cook, so I'm sorry.  I'll tell you how to make it, and estimate amounts as I do so.

 

First, you'll want to saute your aromatics: shallots/onions & garlic.  I added the mushrooms right away too, then the beef.  You could use steak or some other form of beef, whatever you have on hand or like.  We had an extra huge hamburger patty left over from a few nights ago, so I broke it up and used it.  Saute until browned. 

As your're browning your meat and aromatics, put about 1 cup of non-dairy milk of your choice into a cup, and add roughly 1 T of vinegar, then let it sit.  This will make it sour.  If you use white vinegar, this is a pretty good measurement.  If you use red wine vinegar, use a little less as the flavor will be more overpowering.  Balsamic vinegar is probably not right for this purpose, but hey, if you want...throw caution to the wind. 

Once browned, add the coconut milk mixture and about 1 cup of your stock of choice.  Add spices and bay leaves.  Salt & pepper to taste.  Then you'll let it simmer for about 15 minutes, it'll start to thicken up and become like a gravy.  Add worcestershire sauce once it's thickened so you don't cook out all of the flavor, it's kind of the punch you'll be looking for. 

Start boiling your noodles as it thickens up.  When the noodles are done, drain and set aside for just a minute.  Reduce your temp to low, and add 1 tablespoon of mayo to the sauce and watch it turn into stroganoff magically before your eyes.  Mix that in, and then add your noodles.  Now you have a magical dairy free bowl of stroganoff!  Right before you serve, add some parsley in for color and BAM.  Watch your three-year-old plow through THREE helpings of it.