This week I am cooking unashamedly “brown food” that, I promise you, is packed with flavour. While this may present a visual challenge for the designer and colour grader on these pages (we do get on), you and I can rest safe in the knowledge that we are going to eat well. We are in the midst of prime comfort-cooking season, with Christmas just far enough away and evenings full of bite and dark drama. It’s a time for slower and batch cooking, with rich sauces, stocks, some extra butter in the mash and a little indulgence in parts.
First up is the all-time classic of beef stroganoff, a dish with a rich history rooted in Russian cuisine. Attributed to a prominent Russian family, the Stroganovs, it dates from the mid-19th century. The earliest recipes featured sautéed beef, typically served with a creamy sauce and often accompanied by mustard or sour cream.
The first published recipe appeared in a Russian cookbook in the 1860s but the dish gained international popularity when it was introduced to the West, particularly to France and the United States. Variations emerged, reflecting local tastes and ingredients. In the US, beef stroganoff became a staple in the mid-20th century, often served over egg noodles or rice, and has been a home-cooking favourite ever since.
My version is generous with sour cream, parsley and mustard for seasoning, with beef strip loin and button mushrooms showcasing the simplicity of the ingredients needed. Served with mash, pasta, rice or even barley, this is a hug in a bowl.
The second recipe is a vegetarian lentil shepherd’s pie. Traditionally, the shepherd description suggests the use of lamb or mutton as a base ingredient – a nod to the caretaker of the main event. Perhaps we should call this a horticulturist pie? In any case, we’ve treated the lentils as we would the meat, cooking them out in aromats before deglazing with wine and slow cooking in vegetable stock and soy sauce for that meaty feeling.
As an added bonus, the lentils are packed with protein and are a great sponge for the flavours in the sauce. I’ve topped this with mash and baked it off, but the basic ragu is a great base recipe for many dishes, even just folded through some pasta.
