Easy Beef Stroganoff

Hello dear readers! I have returned from my travels in the great state of Michigan and couldn't be happier to be back in the kitchen. For the last 3+ weeks I have survived on a diet consisting of Subway, Panera, Wendy's, Lean Cuisine, and free hotel breakfasts. Since arriving home on Friday, I have cooked Tuscan Baked Chicken and Beans (very yummy recipe from Cooking Light), veggie stir-fry and two loaves of bread.

When I was putting together this week's menu, I realized we had not eaten red meat in awhile, so I searched through my recipe box for inspiration and rediscovered this recipe for Easy Beef Stroganoff. In all honesty, the reason I like this recipe so much is that it has lots of noodles, and it's a one-pot meal that's quick to throw together.

I don't know about you, but after working from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. everyday I want to come home and EAT! So, I saved myself some time by chopping the onion and pepper on Sunday, and buying pre-sliced mushrooms. Another element of this dish that makes it easy and quick is that it calls for ground beef, not pieces of beef. 

Easy Beef Stroganoff (6 hearty servings)
The original recipe came from the Atlanta-Journal Constitution- you can view it here.

1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 lbs. lean ground beef
1 bell pepper chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 8-oz. package of sliced mushrooms (OR you can use 3 oz. of jarred mushrooms-just add them in at end when you stir in the sour cream )
1 small can of tomato sauce plus enough water added to make 3 cups of tomato "juice" (OR you can use 3 cups of tomato juice. I never have tomato juice around so I just thin out the tomato sauce with water)
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Salt to taste
3 cups of medium OR wide egg noodles
1/3 to 1 cup of sour cream (to your taste)

You will need a large non-stick skillet that has a lid. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Cook the onions and mushrooms until they soften.

Next, add the beef and cook until no longer pink.(You may want to drain the excess oil before moving on to the next step). Mix the tomato sauce with the water (you should have 3 cups of liquid total), and then add the Worcestershire sauce and season the "juice" with salt.

Place the egg noodles over the meat, and pour the tomato juice mixture over the noodles. Put the lid on the skillet, and cook for 8-10 minutes. Add the green pepper and cover the pan again. Cook until the noodles are tender- at least 5 minutes.

Once the noodles have cooked, you can either mix the sour cream into the dish in the skillet or serve the stroganoff (sans sour cream) into bowls and let people mix in as much (or as little) sour cream as they would like.

This is a perfect dish for a windy, dreary, rainy, fall day.

Since I'll be out on the road for the next two weeks, I won't have much time for baking this weekend. However, I am going to try the basic recipe from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day this week- so look for a post about that this weekend!