Saturday 2 June 2012

Mushroom stroganoff

wow, this was surprisingly good, considering I was winging it.  and quick and easy.   I came up with the idea when I thought about cooking up onions and mushrooms.  Then I thought, I wonder if soy yogurt would make it taste like stroganoff!  (source cream substitute).  I didn't know what other flavors to add, but I recalled adding dill in the old days.  I googled mushroom stroganoff and saw some other ingredients like tarragon which I didn't have and ground mustard seeds which I didn't have but I had some mustard and some mixtures with tarragon in it.  So basically I had no idea what I was doing but it worked.

Ingredients:
1 large onion
1 lb mushrooms
4-8 oz homemade soy yogurt, or 3-6 oz WholeSoy Yogurt (plain unsweetened)  (note, the WholeSoy yogurt is stronger than my homemade so I'd start with 3 oz and see if it's too tart, then add more if you'd like).
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp  tarragon
1 tsp oregano
(amounts and choice of herbs doesn't matter too much)
2-4 tsp chopped fresh dill (or 1 tsp dried)
1 T unsalted mustard (I'm not sure, I just gave a biggish squirt)
1-2 cups cooked brown rice or
1 head lettuce/spinach
1/2-1 cup frozen peas, optional
some kale, optional

Here's the dried spices and mustard I used:
Like I said, I was just guessing.  thyme could be good.  tarragon?  suggestions welcome!

To cook:

Chop the onions while heating up a dry pan on the stove.  Throw the onions in the pan and let them sear.  Stir and let brown a bit, while chopping the mushrooms.  throw them in the pan.  stir.  they will release their liquids. add kale if you want (probably not recommended but if you want some greens...)  add the dry spices and mustard.  if you need to add some water, start with 1/4-1/3 cup, i.e., not too much.  Let that simmer until the onions (and kale) are as tender as you want (5-10 minutes or up to you).   add the peas if you want them, cook for a few more minutes.  add the dill.  add the yogurt.   

Serve over brown rice and/or chopped lettuce and/or chopped spinach.

Here are our meals:

Housemate's is on the left, served over brown rice (actually I was out of rice so used oat groats! it worked great) with peas.  Mine is on the right, served over a head of chopped lettuce, no peas.