The beef stroganoff of Friday before last was so well received that I sold out leaving some customers feeling rather disappointed. In an attempt to remedy this, stroganoff will be back on Friday hopefully better than ever. Yes, as before, we will be using local beef from the market and I thought I would share with my readers some of the prep that goes onto making our beef so tasty.
Now in Europe and America, stroganoff is made with fairly tender beef; not so with our local beef. But all one has to do is make a few adjustments and the outcome is in my opinion even better than Western beef.
First, the beef is aged, unwrapped or hung, in the fridge for as long as possible, but a minimum of two days. This dries the meat out a bit and makes it easier to see and work with. After aging, any silver skin, excess fat or gristle is trimmed out as much as possible and the meat cut into strips.
The next step is an idea incorporated from Thai cooking: I "dehd diow" the meat. This simply means putting the strips of beef in the sun for one day in much the same way one would make South African biltong or North American jerky. This step dries the meat out in preparation for the actual cooking.
We begin the cooking by browning the meat, which is why the dehd diow is so important; wet beef will not brown. Poorly browned meat will affect the taste and color of the final result. After browning, the met is set aside and seasoned. Meanwhile, in the same pan, we brown our onions until they are golden, using the moisture in the onions to scrape up all the coagulated juices. Finally, we add back our beef and some liquid (wine, stock, water etc.). Cover and let cook slowly until tender. This could take as much as two or three hours. Patience is the key.
To finish we add a flour and butter roux and some sauteed mushrooms and cook only until the flavors blend and the sauce thickens. Sour cream is added at the end for additional flavor and texture. Et voila! The best Beef Stroganoff this side of Vladivostok.
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