There is nothing earth-shatteringly special about this recipe. But it’s simple, hearty, forgiving, uses ingredients I frequently have on hand, and pleased even my picky eaters. So I guess in that sense, it is special.
A few nights ago, I was scheduled to go to Bunko. Now, my Bunko group is fabulous not only because I truly enjoy the friendship of the women with whom I play, but also because — and this is key — it means I don’t have to cook for an evening. The hostess cooks dinner, and the rest of us just enjoy it. Thank goodness they are all excellent cooks!
However, as I think I’ve mentioned before, sometimes I forget things. Usually that means I don’t do things at all. Occasionally that means I do things twice.
Bunko night turned out to be one of those “do it twice” type evenings. We were out of school for the day, so I ran to the grocery store for a few cider ingredients and picked up a package of reduced-for-quick-sale beef stew meat while I was there.
Then I ran home, dropped our youngest off with Zack and tossed the stew meat into the electric pressure cooker. I took the big girls to piano lessons while my Instant Pot did the hard work.
By the time I returned home, the meat was cooked, the pressure had released … and I remembered that I didn’t have to cook after all. If you think for one minute that I did the right thing, the nice thing, the Christian thing, and finished cooking that meal for my husband and children anyway … well, you would be wrong about me.
Instead, I poured off some of the cooking liquid. I put the cooked beef and some of the remaining cooking liquid (just enough to cover the meat) into a glass bowl and placed it into the fridge. That night, Zack was in charge of supper, and they had pizza.
The next day, I reheated the beef and turned it into beef stroganoff. It was good enough that both my “can we please go out to eat?” kiddo and my “I really don’t like stroganoff” child said it was good. I consider that a win.
Amelia Plair is a mom and high school teacher in Starkville. Email reaches her at [email protected].
EASY BEEF STROGANOFF
1 1/2 pounds stew meat
1 cup beef or chicken stock (or 1 cup water plus beef or chicken bouillon)
1 tablespoon dehydrated minced onion
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 – 1 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons corn starch
Salt and pepper (to taste)
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