Use your slow cooker to turn a relatively inexpensive cut of meat into a decadent and delicious beef stroganoff. The beef is cooked with lots of mushrooms, plus stock, garlic and mustard, then finished with sour cream, right before serving.
A great recipe if you're cooking for a crowd or if you want to make ahead. It reheats so well!
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Beef stroganoff is usually a pretty quick recipe to make (check out my easy steak stroganoff recipe), but cooking beef fast, usually requires a more expensive cut of meat.
I wanted to create a stroganoff using a less expensive cut of meat, but for it still to be tender and have bags of flavour.
Now, usually stroganoff is a very creamy sauce, and not cooked with stock. But cream - and especially sour cream - doesn't hold up well to being slow cooked, particularly if it's the only liquid.
So, for this recipe, we're slow cooking the beef, until beautifully tender, in stock, with the addition of some bold flavours, such as Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce and plenty of garlic.
Only after this slow-cooking stage do we add the cream.
We need enough stock to just cover the beef and mushrooms, but not too much. If we have too much stock, the sauce will be thinner, and the beef will get lost in far too much sauce - especially once we add in the double cream and sour cream.
📋 What do we need?
- Beef - I use braising beef, or casserole beef. Ideally with a little bit of fat on it.
- Mushrooms - I find chestnut mushrooms have lots of flavour, so I use a mixture of regular and baby chestnut mushrooms, thickly sliced. Baby portobello and cremini mushrooms would also work well.
- The mushrooms will reduce down, so don't be afraid to use plenty (add in even more than the recipe states if you're a big mushroom lover).
- Cream - we're using a mixture of double (heavy) cream and sour cream to finish off the dish and give it that signature stroganoff flavour. Always go with full-fat to as full-fat is mush less likely to split.
📺 Watch how to make it
Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- First we flour, season then brown the beef. This searing stage adds extra flavour to the beef and sauce, so don't miss it out. Some slow cookers have a searing functionality (this is the crockpot (<-- affiliate link) I have, I love it!), but you can simply fry the beef in a large frying pan, with oil in a couple of batches.
- Then we transfer the beef to the slow cooker and fry up the onions and garlic, before adding in the Dijon, Worcestershire sauce, stock and mushrooms. Bring to the boil, then transfer to the slow cooker too (if you're using the searing function of the slow cooker, just add the onions, garlic etc directly in with the beef).
- Cook in the slow cooker until the beef is tender, then stir in the double (heavy) cream and sour cream before serving.
👩🍳PRO TIP Mix the sour cream and double (heavy)cream together before adding to the slow cooker.
- Sour cream is lower in fat than double cream, and the higher fat content of the double cream helps to stabilise the sour cream, so it won't split when you add it into the hot slow cooker.
🍽️ What to serve it with
- Serve with pasta shapes or tagliatelle. Try my easy homemade pasta!
- Creamy Mashed Potato
- Crispy Sauteed Potatoes
- My favourite Smashed Potatoes
- Green veg - such as roasted broccoli or parmesan green beans
Look at that beautiful glossy sauce 😍
🥩 What is the best cut of beef to use?
- Chuck steak (braising steak) – comes from the forequarter- Consisting of parts of the neck, shoulder blade, and upper arm.
- It’s a tough but very flavourful cut of meat. It has a lot of connective tissue, which needs long slow cooking to break down and become tender.
- Silverside (bottom round) – comes from the hindquarter – just above the back leg.
- It’s a leaner, inexpensive cut of meat with little marbling. The lack of fat means it doesn’t have as much flavour as chuck steak, so make sure you use good quality stock to cook it in. It’s good for slow cooking, but must be cooked with enough moisture/liquid so doesn’t dry out and become tough.
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Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs) braising beef or casserole beef - chopped into bitesize chunks
- 4 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large onion - peeled and chopped
- 4 cloves garlic - peeled and minced
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 600 ml (2 ½ cups) beef stock - (2-3 stock cubes, plus water, is fine)
- 300 g (10.5 oz) chestnut mushrooms - thickly sliced
- 1 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch) mixed with 3 tbsp cold water to make a slurry - (optional)
- 120 ml (½ cup) double (heavy) cream
- 240 ml (1 cup) sour cream
To Serve:
- small bunch fresh parsley - roughly chopped
- freshly ground black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place the chopped beef in a bowl and sprinkle on the flour, salt, and pepper. Toss everything together.1.5 kg (3.3 lbs) braising beef or casserole beef, 4 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan (skillet) pan over a high heat (or use the searing function of your slow cooker if it has that functionality).2 tbsp sunflower oil
- Then add half the beef to the pan. Cook for 6-8 minutes, turning regularly until browned all over.
- Once browned, transfer to the slow cooker with a slotted spoon and repeat with the rest of the beef, transferring the second batch to the slow cooker too.
- Turn down the heat of your frying pan down to medium and add the onion. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring regularly until the onion starts to soften.1 large onion
- Stir in the garlic, and cook for a further minute.4 cloves garlic
- Then add the Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, beef stock, and mushrooms.1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, 2 tbsp Dijon mustard, 600 ml (2 ½ cups) beef stock, 300 g (10.5 oz) chestnut mushrooms
- Stir everything together, making sure to scrape up any bits that may have stuck to the bottom of the pan.
- Bring to the boil, stir again then transfer to the slow cooker. Cook on high for 5-6 hours or low for 7-8 hours, until the beef is tender.
- If you'd like to thicken the sauce a little, stir in the cornflour slurry.1 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch) mixed with 3 tbsp cold water to make a slurry
- Mix together the double cream and sour cream, then carefully stir into the beef and sauce, being careful not to break part the beef (it will be delicate).120 ml (½ cup) double (heavy) cream, 240 ml (1 cup) sour cream
- Top with freshly chopped parsley and a sprinkling of black pepper before serving.small bunch fresh parsley, freshly ground black pepper
Video
✎ Notes
Check a few times in the last hour and top up with more stock or a splash of boiling water if it's starting to look a little dry. Can I make it ahead? Yes, you can make this dish ahead, including adding the cream, then cool, cover and refrigerate.
Reheat in a large pan over a low heat, stirring often, until piping hot throughout. Can I freeze it? Yes, I've tested freezing this recipe and it reheats without splitting in my experience.
Freeze in portions, then defrost in the refrigerator overnight. Note: Some liquid will separate a little when defrosting. Reheat in a large pan over a low heat, stirring often, until piping hot throughout. Ingredient swaps
- Swap the beef for pork (I find cubed pork shoulder works best).
- Swap the chestnut mushrooms for whole baby mushrooms or try thickly sliced portabella or cremini mushrooms.
- Add extra vegetables - sliced green bell pepper and/or peas work well. Just add them in for the last 30 minutes of cooking so they don't lose their colour and go mushy.
Stick to the same ingredient ratios (but do ensure you use enough stock to just cover the beef) and cooking time Nutritional information is approximate, per serving, based on this recipe making 8 servings.
Nutrition
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Marie Connellan says
Out-of this wirld
Marilyn Smith says
Have made this recipe absolutely delicious as all you recipes are and so easy to do,
Thanks once again
Kath says
Loved this slow cooker version, batch cooked, so plenty in the freezer for another day.😋