With stroganoff threatened on the streets, make the Russian dish or its Brazilian version at home

Who would have thought that a simple beef and mushroom stew could generate so much discord. Poor stroganoff, so rich in flavor and harmless in appearance, has become the target of the gastronomic universe along with Russian partners such as the moscow mule drink, made from vodka and ginger.

Both have suffered, in recent days, culinary retaliation for their birthplace — the cocktail changed its name and became kiev mule in bars in the United States and in some establishments in Brazil, while the dish was temporarily eliminated from the menu of the Dona Onça restaurant. , by Janaína Rueda, who came back less than 24 hours later and reattached the mignon cubes to the menu.

Stroganoff was born more than a century ago in Saint Petersburg, Russia, at the Stroganov Palace. His origin story has several versions told over time, with none of them having their absolute veracity proven.

In Brazil, the genesis is more precise. The national version of the dish was created by the (Russian) chef Gregor Berezanski, responsible for the cuisine of the Vogue nightclub, founded in 1947 by the Austrian baron Max Von Stuckart, and a milestone in the social and political life of the Rio de Janeiro capital.

In Berezanski’s stroganoff step-by-step, there were beef strips, mushrooms and sour cream. From the Vogue kitchen to the high society houses it was a leap.

Among them was the apartment of the pianist Bené Nunes, who died in 1997. “In 1959, the apartment, in Gávea, competed with that of Nara Leão’s parents, in Copacabana, as the main meeting point for young bossanovistas”, recalls the journalist. and writer Ruy Castro, columnist for sheet and author of “A Noite do Meu Bem”, in which he tells the story of the samba-canção.

“In both, the meetings advanced into the early hours, but in Bené’s there was an advantage: around two in the morning, his wife Dulce, the stunning Dulce Bressane, actress, singer and former cover of ‘O Cruzeiro’, served a great stroganoff to the class”, says Ruy.

“After hours of whiskey and guitar, nothing could beat it better. It can be said, therefore, that ‘O Barquinho’, by [Roberto] Menescal and [Ronaldo] Boscoli, was not born on the high seas, as is thought, but from a stroganoff.”

Not even such a glorious past, however, was able to save stroganoff from the controversy surrounding the anti-war protests in Ukraine. And, just in case, given the risk of the dish being filed again from Brazilian restaurants, it’s worth learning how to make the recipe at home.

Check out two versions below: the Russian original, described by chef Paulo Farias, from Stroganov, a São Paulo delivery restaurant specializing in stroganoff, at Itaim Bibi; and a Brazilian version with chicken, protein (for now) more affordable in supermarkets, signed by culinary artist Juliana Ventura.

RUSSIAN BEEF STROGONOFF

Difficulty: Medium
Performance: 2 to 3 people

Ingredients

• 10 grams of crushed garlic
• 500 grams of white rice, cooked or of your choice
• 10 ml of olive oil
• 150 grams of homemade or industrial potato straw
• 70 grams of homemade or industrial beef broth
• 20 grams diced onion
• 60 grams of fresh mushrooms
• 400 grams of filet mignon
• 5 ml of Worcestershire sauce
• 10 grams of Dijon mustard
• 0.5 grams of nutmeg
• 4 grams smoked hot paprika
• 1 gram of freshly ground black pepper
• salt to taste
• 2 grams of fresh or dried parsley
• 420 grams of sour cream

Method of preparation

1. Dilute half a ¼ of a tablet of industrialized beef broth in 70 ml of water (in Stroganov, the broth is produced in the kitchen based on marrow and vegetables, in a production that takes 16 hours to prepare).
2. In a deep frying pan or pan of your preference heated, put the oil and sauté the garlic and onion.
3. Start with the meat of your choice, previously seasoned with salt and half of the smoked hot paprika, Dijon mustard and black pepper. Sauté quickly with the garlic and onion mixture, add the diluted beef broth and stir.
4. Add the mushrooms and stir. Then add the souer cream, the nutmeg, stir and finish with the Worcestershire sauce.
5. Assemble the dish with the stroganov, the potato straw of your choice and the cooked rice. Garnish with the rest of the smoked spicy paprika and the parsley of your choice.

BRAZILIAN CHICKEN STROGONOFF

Difficulty: Medium
Performance: 6 peoples

Ingredients

• 500 g chicken breast fillet
• 1 medium onion
• 50 ml of vodka
• 200 g shitake mushroom
• 1 can of peeled tomato
• 200 ml fresh or UHT cream
• 3 tablespoons of wheat flour
• 1 lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons of ketchup
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Method of preparation

1. Cut the chicken breast into small cubes. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

2. In a large pan, sauté the finely chopped onion in oil. Add the seasoned chicken, Worcestershire sauce and flour and mix well. Cover and let it cook for two or three minutes.

3. With the help of a metal ladle, flambé the meat. To do this, put the vodka in the ladle, bring it close to a lit stove burner and wait for the drink to catch fire slightly. Then add to the meat. A flame will rise. Wait for the fire to go down and mix well.

4. Add the ketchup, mustard and chopped peeled tomatoes. Mix.

5. Add the sliced ​​shitake and cook for 15 minutes.

6. Add the cream, adjust salt and pepper. Serve with rice and potato sticks.