You’re availing yourself of the charms of the great outdoors, lording over your dominion of tent stakes and twine, when the inevitable happens. Your stomach informs you in no uncertain terms that it demands tribute. Sound familiar? Enter the beef stroganoff hoagie.
Call it a strogie if you’re in a hurry, or stroganov if you’d rather pay homage to the nineteenth-century Russians who first sautéed their beef in sour cream. (If it was good enough for the Tsar, it’s good enough for your stomach.) The strogie takes a classic and instead of slapping it on pasta, bundles everything in a more portable package. It’s a sandwich love story—the happy ending after a Philly rib eye and a just-soggy-enough-to-be-delicious French dip fell in love and raised a beef stroganoff baby together.
Our recipe may be too involved for backpacking, but for car camping, the versatile strogie proves its worth. It’s hearty yet handy, palatable but practical. Done well, the strogie provides a satisfying complement to a summer’s evening in the wild.
Ingredients
Feeds 2
1 tsp oil
1 lb boneless short ribs or rib eye steak
1 ½ cups cremini mushrooms
2 large shallots
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 clove garlic
¼ cup dry white wine
1 cup beef stock
¼ cup of sour cream
1 tsp salt & pepper
2 hoagie rolls
Optional
chives
regular/ground Dijon mustard
pickle spears
Directions
Before you head out, ask your butcher to thinly slice your choice of meat. If not, freeze meat for about 45 minutes. This will make it easier work with and to slice thinly. You should also thinly slice both mushrooms and shallots.
On high, heat oil in a skillet. Brown the meat in small batches to avoid crowding.
Remove all meat from the skillet and bring down to medium heat. Melt the butter. Add shallots and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and continue sautéing for an additional 10 minutes. Press in garlic. Sauté for 2 minutes.
Add wine, scrape brown bits at bottom of skillet as you add wine. (This is called deglazing.)
Add beef stock. Cover and braise for at least 30 minutes. If you’re in no rush, do it for an hour. (You can skip this step all together. We highly recommend it, though. The liquid adds flavor and tenderizes the meat.) Temper and add cream. Finish with salt and pepper.
Assemble and enjoy!
Additional Notes
When assembling, don’t be afraid to scoop some of that savory broth. It’ll soak into the bread, making each bite extra tasty. It’s a soggy mess, but it makes all the difference.
Add an extra kick with Dijon mustard and a pickle spear. Feel free to sprinkle on some chives.
