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There’s something about slow cooker beef stroganoff that makes the whole house smell like dinner for hours before you ever sit down to eat. Tender beef, a rich and savory cream sauce, egg noodles — it’s the kind of meal that feels like it took all day, because it did, and you barely had to do anything. Just set it up before lunch and walk away.
Why You’ll Love It
- Completely hands-off — everything goes in before noon and dinner is waiting for you by six
- Fork-tender beef every time — low and slow does all the work
- Rich, creamy sauce — savory and tangy with that sour cream finish that makes it stroganoff
- Feeds a crowd — easy to stretch with extra broth and noodles
- Kid and family approved — the smell alone brings everyone to the kitchen
A Few Words About the Ingredients
The beef: use actual stew meat, the pre-cut chunks from the grocery store. Don’t try to get fancy and cube up a roast yourself unless you have time and want to — the stew meat is already cut to size and it does exactly what it needs to do here. Low and slow will turn even the toughest cuts silky.
Cream of mushroom soup: I use Campbell’s. I know some people have opinions about this. I do not have those opinions.
The sour cream is what makes it stroganoff instead of just beef in gravy, so don’t skip it and don’t substitute plain yogurt if you can help it — I’ve tried, and it’s fine but it’s not the same. If you want to use light sour cream, go ahead, I’m not going to stop you.
Dijon mustard: just a tablespoon, and honestly you can’t really taste it specifically, but when I’ve left it out (which I did once because I was out and too tired to go to the store), something was slightly off. It’s one of those things.
Fresh mushrooms or canned are both fine. I usually do fresh because I buy them anyway, but canned and drained will work and nobody will know the difference.
Ingredients
- 2 to 2½ pounds beef stew meat, cut into roughly 1 to 1½ inch chunks (I usually end up closer to 2½ pounds)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped — optional but I always do it
- 1 can (10.5 oz) cream of mushroom soup
- 1½ cups beef broth
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 or 3 cloves garlic, minced (I eyeball this, honestly — probably closer to 3)
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme or Italian seasoning, if you want it
- 8 ounces sliced mushrooms, fresh or canned
- ¾ to 1 cup sour cream — start with ¾ and taste it
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water, if the sauce needs thickening
- Egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or rice for serving
- Chopped fresh parsley if you’re feeling decorative
Instructions
Start by putting the beef in the slow cooker and seasoning it with salt and pepper. If you’re using onion — and you should — scatter it over the top. Same with mushrooms.
In a bowl, whisk together the cream of mushroom soup, beef broth, Worcestershire, mustard, and garlic until it’s smooth. Or mostly smooth. I always have a few lumps of soup and I’ve stopped worrying about it — they dissolve. Add the thyme if you’re using it.
Pour the whole mixture over the beef. Gently stir so the meat is mostly submerged and coated. It doesn’t need to be perfect. Put the lid on.
Now here’s where I want to say something about LOW vs HIGH, because I’ve had this argument with myself for years. If I have until dinnertime, I always do LOW for 7 to 8 hours. The beef is more tender, more melting, and the sauce develops differently. HIGH for 4 to 5 hours works on rushed days but it’s not quite as good. I know myself, so I set it to LOW and stop fussing about it.
About 20 minutes before you want to eat, if the sauce looks thinner than you’d like — mine usually does, though it varies, sometimes I’m not sure why — stir in the cornstarch slurry, put the lid back on, and let it go another 15 to 20 minutes. Or just serve it as-is. It’s a sauce, not a gravy, and saucier is fine.
Turn the heat down and stir in the sour cream. This is the moment the dish becomes itself. The sauce goes creamy and pale and warm-looking. Taste it. Adjust salt. Adjust pepper. Sometimes I add a splash more Worcestershire at this point and feel very mysterious about it.
Variations
Some people make this with Greek yogurt instead of sour cream — that’s fine, it’s a healthier choice, it’s just not quite the same as the original. If someone in your house doesn’t do mushrooms, just leave them out. The sauce is still deeply savory without them. If they’re picky about onions but you want the flavor, add ½ teaspoon onion powder to the sauce mixture and don’t mention it.
For chicken — I’ve done this with boneless thighs and it works well, just check it around the 3.5-hour mark on LOW because chicken goes faster than beef. Pork shoulder chunks also work, though the flavor is a little different and takes some getting used to.
Storage
It keeps in the fridge for about 4 days, though I’ve stretched it to 5 when it was just me at home and I wasn’t going to let it go to waste. Reheat it low and slow on the stove or in the microwave with a splash of broth to loosen the sauce — it thickens a lot overnight. Store the noodles separately if you can, or they’ll soak up everything and turn into a different dish entirely. Not a bad dish, but a different one.
I always mean to make this more often than I do. Every time I serve it — whether it’s just me and whoever happens to be around, or a full table of people in November when everyone comes back for a few days — someone says they forgot how good it was. I say I forgot too, though I’m not sure that’s entirely true. I think I just take it for granted because it’s so easy. It asks almost nothing of you. You just have to remember to start it before lunch.
Slow Cooker Family-Style Beef Stroganoff
Ingredients
- 2-2 1/2 pounds beef stew meat cut into 1- to 1 1/2-inch chunks
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 onion medium, finely chopped (optional)
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup 10.5 oz
- 1 1/2 cups beef broth
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp dried thyme or Italian seasoning optional
- 8 oz mushrooms sliced, fresh or canned (optional)
- 3/4-1 cup sour cream adjust to taste
- 2 tbsp cornstarch optional
- 2 tbsp cold water for slurry (optional)
- egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or rice for serving
- fresh parsley chopped, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Place the beef stew meat into the slow cooker. Season with salt and black pepper. Add chopped onion and mushrooms if using.
- In a bowl, whisk together cream of mushroom soup, beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, garlic, and optional seasoning until smooth.
- Pour the sauce mixture evenly over the beef, making sure all pieces are coated.
- Gently stir to combine, ensuring most of the beef is submerged in the sauce.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours until the beef is tender.
- If a thicker sauce is desired, mix cornstarch and cold water, stir into the slow cooker, and cook for 15-20 minutes until thickened.
- Reduce heat to LOW or WARM and stir in sour cream until smooth and creamy. Adjust seasoning if needed.
- Serve hot over egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or rice. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.