BEEF STROGANOFF

BEEF STROGANOFF

Ingredients:

* About 2 cups of sliced mushrooms of your choice, fresh or dried. You can use dried ones if you like, just soak them in water first (then squeeze out water.) I used 1 box of sliced whites and 2 boxes of "gourmet sliced mix" from Whole Foods - it was a combo of oyster, crimini, shiitake, and portobello mushrooms.
* Butter or olive oil
* 1 yellow onion, sliced crosswise (from top to bottom so you have strips, not rings.)
* 1 pound of meat. I suggest using something tender, like a sirloin or tenderloin. Cut in bite-sized cubes.
* Sour Cream - about 1 1/2 to 2 cups - can substitute yogurt if you want to go creamier, but be healthier. Or do 1 cup sour cream and 1 cup yogurt.
* Salt, pepper, rubbed sage, white pepper, and paprika
* Egg noodles

Technique:

Saute the mushrooms in butter or oil until golden. Remove and set aside. Saute onions until brown. Set aside. Add the meat and cook lightly, but don't overcook because you will be adding everything back to the pan and cooking more. Remove meat and set aside. Drain meat juices from pan. Add sour cream, and over low heat (so it doesn't curdle) add salt/pepper/sage/white pepper to your taste. I don't really measure, I just shake in a little, taste, shake in a little more, taste, and repeat until I am satisfied. I think I do the shake/taste thing only 2 or 3 times. Stir up the cream, and add the vegetables and meat back to the pan and stir until coated, only a few minutes. Serve over hot cooked egg noodles and dust with paprika.

AFRICAN BEEF AND PEANUT STEW

AFRICAN BEEF AND PEANUT STEW

1 tablespoon oil
1 1/2 pounds beef, cut into chunks
2 medium onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ginger, minced
2 cups water
6 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)
1/2 cup to 3/4 cup chunky natural peanut butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Take a Dutch oven or a non-nonstick pan, pour a little oil on the bottom, and set it over medium-high heat. Let the pan get very hot, then add the beef chunks. Do not crowd the beef. Make sure the chunks do not touch. Cook the beef until it's nicely browned, about 2-3 minutes on each side. You may have to do a few batches of this, depending on how much meat you're using. Set the beef chunks aside.

Reduce the heat to medium, add some more oil to the pot, then add the onions. Sauté until softened. Add the garlic and ginger, and sauté for 2-3 more minutes.

Return the beef chunks to the pot and add water to cover (about 2 cups). Add tomatoes, cayenne, coriander, cumin, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until meat is tender, about 2 hours. If you find the stew getting too thick, add a little more water or some more tomatoes while it continues to cook.

Once the meat feels tender enough to puncture with a fork, add 1/2 - 3/4 cups peanut butter and continue to simmer until the meat is very tender (it should easily flake apart) and the veggies have cooked down into a nice gravy, about another hour.

At this point, taste it and adjust the seasonings and peanut butter as desired. If the stew is too juicy, you can use cornstarch to thicken the gravy, but you usually won't have to do that. This is a very forgiving recipe. You can adjust all of the ingredients somewhat without causing a problem.

Serve over rice with a side of sukuma wiki and tortillas, ideally homemade chapati. It's even better the next day once the flavors have really melded, so it makes great leftovers.