Pork Stroganoff

A dish with a mysterious history

At first glance, the story of how traditional Beef Stroganoff was invented seems straightforward, but there are loads of conflicting accounts.

Some food historians claim this dish was created for the older Count Alexander Grigorievich Stroganoff from Odessa, who needed soft meat because of his bad teeth. At the same time, other stories insist it was made for the young (and rather dashing!) Count Pavel Stroganoff from Moscow!

Regardless of who dreamed up this classic dish, we know it is delicious.

Fun fact: The original Stroganoff recipe had no sour cream or mushrooms, so it was missing the best parts!

Ingredients

To make my creamy Pork Stroganoff, you’ll need the following main ingredients:

• Pork Fillet (Tenderloin): As stroganoff is cooked quickly, you need nice, lean, tender pork. Enter my favourite cut of meat, tenderloin. Sometimes known as pork fillet, this part of the pig is beautifully tender (hence the name), so ideal for pan frying. You’ll usually find tenderloins vacuum-packed at the grocery store. The instructions given here for the pork version will work for chicken or beef as well.
• Mushrooms: I use ordinary brown or white mushrooms, though Pork stroganoff will taste fantastic with all types of mushrooms.
• White Wine and Chicken Stock: Add flavour and balance to the meal. To make this dish alcohol-free, replace the wine with additional stock and add a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce to pep things up a little.
• Mustard and Paprika: These are used to flavour the sauce. Some recipes call for smoked paprika, but I prefer the more subtle flavour of sweet paprika powder.
• Sour Cream: The special ingredient for that glorious creamy sauce. Use a full-fat sour cream or creme fraiche in this recipe, as it is less likely to split.
• Thyme / Parsley: Fresh herbs make all the difference in a dish like this, so be sure to use plenty. They give a pop of flavour and freshness to the creamy gravy.

Pork Stroganoff with leftover pork

While it won’t be as tender as pork stroganoff made with fresh pork tenderloin or fillet, it is perfectly possible to make this dish with leftover pork roast.

Cut or shred the pork into fine pieces and add to the sauce toward the end of the cooking time. Because all the fat will have rendered out of the pork on first cooking, adding it too early to the sauce will make it tough.

Chicken Stroganoff

Both chicken breast and chicken thighs can be used in place of pork in this recipe.

Reheating stroganoff

• If you haven’t added sour cream, reheat on the stove and add sour cream in the last two minutes of cooking time.
• If you are reheating the completed dish, the sauce may split. Don’t worry, it is still perfectly edible. If you like, try binding the sauce by mixing 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with ⅓ cup of water and stirring through the stroganoff.