Hamburger Stroganoff

Ingredients

• Butter
• 1 lb ground chuck
• Salt and pepper
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 8 ounces sliced cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1/3 cup of dry sherry, dry white wine, or water
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley, loosely packed
• 1 1/4 cups full fat sour cream, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika or more to taste
• 8 ounces egg noodles

Directions

1. Set a large pot of salted water over the heat for the pasta, using 1 teaspoon salt for every quart of water. While it heats, place a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Add 1 teaspoon butter and tilt the pan so it coats the surface.
2. Brown the ground beef in batches so the pan does not get crowded, breaking it up as you add it. Season the meat with salt, then leave it alone in the pan, since moving it around too much keeps it from browning well.
3. After the first side is deeply browned, which should take a couple minutes depending on your pan, turn the meat with tongs, a fork, or a metal spatula. When the second side has browned too, transfer it out of the pan with a slotted spoon and set it aside.
4. Repeat with the remaining beef, adding a teaspoon of butter for each batch if the pan needs it, and seasoning both the pan and the meat with salt as you go. Once all the beef is browned, take it out of the pan and pour off any extra fat.
5. Add the onions to the same pan. If the beef was very lean and the pan looks dry, add a tablespoon of olive oil or butter.
6. Cook the onions for about 5 minutes, stirring and scraping up the browned bits from the beef, until they are soft. Transfer the onions to the bowl with the meat.
7. Check your pasta timing here; depending on the brand, this is probably when the noodles should go into the boiling salted water.
8. While the pasta cooks, add a tablespoon of butter to the pan and turn the heat up to medium high. Add the sliced mushrooms and cook them until they are well browned, about 4 minutes.
9. Pour in the sherry, dry white wine, or water, scraping the bottom of the pan to lift up the browned bits. Simmer until the liquid has cooked down by at least half, then reduce the heat to low.
10. Take the pan off the heat. Stir in the sour cream and paprika until the sauce is smooth. Put the pan back over very low heat, making sure the sour cream does not boil, since it may curdle. If the sauce gets too thick at any point, stir in a few tablespoons of water to loosen it.
11. Add the lemon juice and about 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of salt, tasting as you go. Stir the beef and onions back into the sauce, then mix in the chopped parsley. Season with more salt, pepper, and/or paprika to taste.
12. Hold the stroganoff over warm heat until the noodles finish cooking. When the noodles are al dente, drain them.
13. Spoon the hamburger stroganoff over the egg noodles.