I had a conversation with a coworker recently about foods we ate as children, and the topic of beef stroganoff came up. They mentioned that they really disliked the boxed variety of it that their mom used to make, and it was such a turnoff that they haven’t eaten the dish since. I have been thinking about stroganoff ever since that conversation, and decided to take a stab at an elevated version of the dish. If they ever want to try it again, I think that this preparation could probably change their mind about this classic dish. I paired buttered egg noodles with sous vided prime sirloin steak (I know its unnecessary to buy a prime steak when you’re going to sous vide it and cover it in creamy gravy but I don’t regret the decision, it was incredible!) and a rich shiitake and cremini mushroom gravy.

For the beef part of the stroganoff, I started with five fairly small prime sirloin steaks to serve four people and have plenty of leftovers. After seasoning the steaks with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder I cooked it for an hour or so with my immersion circulator at 115F degrees. Once they was done I let the steaks cool completely, then seared them off on the grill just until browned.

The gravy got by far the most time and attention of any of the components for this meal. I used:

• Two tablespoons of salted butter
• Two medium sweet onions, thinly sliced
• Two shallots, thinly sliced
• Three garlic cloves, minced
• Two or three tablespoons of flour
• 12 oz cremini mushrooms, sfliced
• 12 oz shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• A pinch or two of crushed dried rosemary
• A few shakes each of dried basil and dried parsley
• A few shakes of garlic and mushroom powder
• About a teaspoon of dried mustard
• A little less than a cup of pinot grigio
• A few tablespoons of veal demi glace (half of a seven ounce container)
• Two tablespoons of beef better than bullion
• About two or three cups of water
• Almost a pint of heavy cream
• About a third of a cup of sour cream

I started by sautéing the sweet onions at medium heat in the butter, with a sprinkle of kosher salt. When they got soft and a little brown, I added the shallots and cooked until translucent. I added the garlic and cooked for a minute or two, then added the flour and cooked for another two minutes or so. Next I added the sliced mushrooms, dried herbs, and the mustard and garlic powder. I cooked on medium high heat for several minutes, until the mushrooms were tender, then added the wine and let it cook on medium until evaporated. I added about half the water, then stirred in the demi glace and bullion. I brought it up to a boil then slowly stirred in the heavy cream. Once it came back to a boil, I tasted it, and added the rest of the water to thin the flavor out just a bit. I let it simmer on low for about thirty minutes, stirring occasionally. Once it was thickened up and tasted great (but still just a little more rich and salty that I would usually serve it) I took it off the stove to cool for about five minutes. Just before serving, I stirred in the sour cream until fully incorporated.

I served the steak and gravy over simple buttered noodles. I used 18 ounces of wide egg noodles (one and a half bags) cooked until tender and half a stick of butter. This made more than enough for four people plus leftovers.