Beef stroganoff was part of our regular dinner rotation when I was a kid! Once I moved out on my own I understood why beef stroganoff was a regular dish, it is such an easy dump and go meal and it’s delicious. I often dump all the ingredients into my slow cooker, set the temperature to low and let it cook all day while I am at work.
My beef stroganoff recipe has been adapted to be as quick and easy as possible. I am a very busy person and I do what I can to make cooking dinner as easy as possible.
I, unfortunately, don’t make beef stroganoff as often as I would like anymore because I don’t usually have stew meat on hand. The only reason being is that we buy our meat in bulk and this last time we purchased half a beef, we got a very limited supply of stew meat and I used most of it for, you guessed it, stew! Since we buy our beef in bulk, I don’t buy it from the grocery store and it’s never a thought that’s at the forefront of my mind.
Browning the Stew Meat
This may make you cringe, BUT, I have never browned the stew meat for my beef stroganoff. I don’t remember my parents browning the meat growing up and I never did when I started cooking. As I mentioned earlier, I am usually very busy and I don’t always have the time to brown the meat, so I don’t do it. I think it is totally fine to just add the stew meat straight into the slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients.
However, I have since learned that it is pretty common practice to brown the stew meat prior to adding it to the slow cooker. The process of browning the meat adds beautiful flavor and texture to the meat and the rest of the dish.
Beef Stroganoff as a Freezer Meal Prep
Beef stroganoff is also a wonderful slow cooker freezer meal option! Simply, combine the stew meat, the onions, cream of mushroom soup, mushrooms and seasoning into a gallon freezer bag and store in the freezer. Then whenever you are ready, the prepped bag can be pulled out of the freezer and either thawed in the fridge or added to the slow cooker directly. Note that adding frozen contents to the slow cooker will result in a longer cook time.
Easy Ingredients
The required ingredients are simple and are often staples in the home. I always have onions, cream of mushroom, worcestershire sauce, sour cream, and some sort of broth in the house. This helps pull meals together quickly and without much thought. If you’re someone who always has these ingredients ready to go, then beef stroganoff should 100% be added to your meal rotation.
Do you need a slow cooker to make beef stroganoff?
No, a slow cooker is not required, though it is my preferred method for making beef stroganoff. If you have the time beef stroganoff can be made in a dutch oven or stock pot on low heat. I have also found that beef stroganoff cooks up well in the InstantPot in about 45 minutes.
Don’t forget to check out some of my other easy meal recipes:
Super Easy Beef Stroganoff
Ingredients
- 1 lb stew meat or chuck roast in 1 inch cubes
- ½ medium onion sliced
- 8 oz mushroom sliced
- 10 oz can cream of mushroom
- 8 oz beef broth
- 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- ½ C sour cream
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Cooked egg noodles to serve over
Instructions
- Slice onion from pole to pole and slice mushrooms.
- Add stew meat, cream of mushroom soup, worcestershire sauce, sliced onions and mushrooms, broth and salt and pepper to the slow cooker or a dutch oven.
- Set to high for 3-4 hours of cook time and set to low for 6-8 hours of cook time.
- 30 minutes before serving, add sour cream to the beef stroganoff and mix well.
- Cook noodles.
- Serve beef stroganoff over cooked noodles.
Notes: If you have time to brown the meat, it is well worth your time! Browning the meat adds a depth of flavor and taste to the overall dish.
Great recipe and so easy to follow! Going to be making this again!