Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff
This slow cooker beef stroganoff is tender beef simmered in a savory sauce with golden mushrooms and a creamy finish, served over buttered noodles for the coziest family dinner.
Beef stroganoff is one of those classic comfort dinners that never goes out of style, and this slow cooker version has completely won me over. The beef cooks low and slow until it is fall apart tender, the sauce is rich and savory, and the mushrooms get their own moment in a hot skillet so they turn deeply golden instead of soft and soggy.
I do the little bit of hands on work right at the beginning, and after that the slow cooker takes over for the rest of the day. It is the kind of dinner I can start in the morning and feel good about all afternoon.
I first made this stroganoff on a big cozy fall meal prep day, and I knew it was a keeper before we ever sat down, because the house smelled wonderful for hours. We spooned it over buttered noodles that night, and my family loved it so much that we happily ate it again the very next night. The kids raved about it, and that does not happen with every dinner, so this one went straight into our regular rotation.
Main Ingredients & Swaps
- Beef stew meat: Three pounds makes this hearty enough for our family, with a little left over for lunch the next day. Pat it dry before searing so it browns instead of steams.
- Olive oil and butter: I sear with a little of both. The butter brings the flavor, and the oil keeps the butter from burning.
- Yellow onion: One large onion, sliced pole to pole, from the top down to the root, so the slices hold up through the long cook.
- Mushrooms: Cremini or baby bella mushrooms, cooked separately at the very end so they stay golden and meaty.
- Thyme: The recipe calls for dried thyme, but a bundle of fresh thyme from the garden is lovely too. Just fish the stems out before serving.
- Cream cheese: This is what makes the sauce creamy. Whisk it with some of the hot cooking liquid first so it melts in smoothly. You can substitute this with 1 cup of sour cream for a lighter flavor. I decide based on what ingredients I need to use up!
- Buttered noodles: Our favorite way to serve it, because the noodles catch every bit of that creamy sauce. My homemade butternut squash pasta went exceptionally well with this! I prepped this ahead of time and had it frozen into little nests in my freezer, these cook up just like fresh pasta!
How I Make It
I start by patting the stew meat dry and seasoning it with the salt and pepper. Then I sear it in batches with a little olive oil and butter, working right in the insert of my slow cooker. If your slow cooker does not have a sear function, a large skillet works just as well, and you can move the beef to the slow cooker as it browns. Working in batches matters, because crowded meat steams instead of browns.
Next I sauté the sliced onion in the same pan until it softens, then stir in the garlic, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, and flour. The flour mixture looks a little gluey at first, and that is completely fine. I let it cook for about a minute, pour in the beef broth, and stir until the sauce thickens slightly and picks up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
Add the beef with juices back in, add the thyme, cover, and cook on LOW for 7 to 8 hours or on HIGH for 5 hours, until the beef is very tender.
About half an hour before serving, I sauté the mushrooms separately in butter with garlic and salt until they are deeply golden. Then I add the cream cheese right into the slow cooker, it will quickly soften and you can mix it in to make a rich creamy sauce. Break up the meat with your spoon as you stir. Add in the mushrooms and just ½ tablespoon of sugar at the end balances all the savory flavors perfectly.
Serve it spooned over a pile of buttered noodles with a sprinkle of fresh parsley or chives.
Tips for the Best Slow Cooker Stroganoff
- Pat the beef dry before searing. Dry meat browns, and wet meat steams.
- Sear in batches so every piece gets good color. That browned crust is where so much of the flavor comes from.
- Slice the onion pole to pole, from the top down to the root, so the slices hold their shape during the long cook.
- Cook the mushrooms at the end, never at the beginning. Mushrooms added at the start lose their texture, but sautéed mushrooms stirred in at the finish stay golden and flavorful.
- Do not skip the little bit of sugar at the end. It balances the tang of the Dijon and Worcestershire sauce in the best way.
- If the sauce is thicker than you like, loosen it with water, a few tablespoons at a time.
Watch Me Make It
You can watch me make this stroganoff as part of a cozy fall meal prep day in this video from my YouTube channel:
Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff
Ingredients
For the Beef:
- 3 lb beef stew meat
- 1.5 tsp each kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper for seasoning the stew meat
- 1 tbsp olive oil divided
- 1 tbsp butter divided
- 1 large yellow onion thinly sliced pole to pole
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 cups beef broth low sodium
For the Mushrooms:
- 2 tbsp butter
- 16 oz cremini or baby bella mushrooms sliced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
To Finish:
- 4 oz cream cheese or 1 cup of sour cream
- 1/2 tbsp sugar
- Buttered noodles for serving
Instructions
- Brown the beef: Pat the stew meat dry and season with the salt and pepper. Heat 1/2 tablespoon of oil and 1/2 tbsp butter in the slow cooker on the saute function. Working in batches so you don't crowd the pan, brown the beef on all sides. They don't need to be cooked all the way through, just a quick sear. Transfer the browned beef to a bowl.
- Build the sauce: Add the remaining 1/2 tbsp butter and 1/2 tbsp oil to the slow cooker and add in the sliced onion. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens. Add the garlic and dried thyme and cook for another 30 seconds. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir until evenly coated. Add the Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce. Slowly pour in the beef broth, whisking as you go to loosen any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Let the mixture simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, just until slightly thickened.
- Slow cook: Pour the beef with it's juices back into the slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 to 8 hours, or HIGH for 5 hours, until the beef is very tender.
- Cook the mushrooms: About 20 to 30 minutes before serving, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms in a single layer and cook until deeply golden, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper and cook for another minute.
- Make it creamy: Add the cream cheese (or sour cream) right into the slow cooker and let it begin to soften. Mix this into the sauce as you also break up the meat with a wooden spoon until it is mostly shredded. Add the mushrooms. If the sauce is thicker than you would like, add beef broth a few tablespoons at a time until it reaches your desired consistency.
- Serve: Cook the egg noodles according to the package directions. Spoon the creamy beef stroganoff over the noodles and garnish with fresh parsley or chives.
Video
Notes
More Slow Cooker Recipes
If your slow cooker is already out on the counter, here are a few more of our family favorites to put it to work:
- Easy Slow Cooker Pot Roast Recipe – Tender and Flavorful
- Easy Slow Cooker Beef Carnitas
- Slow Cooker Barbacoa Tacos with Homemade Tortillas and Roasted Salsa Verde
- Best White Chicken Chili in the Slow Cooker
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting me and my family!
