This Slow Cooker Lamb Stroganoff (without alcohol) takes the stress out of getting your family to eat the leftover meat you cooked/roasted a day or two before. It creates tender nuggets of meat in a succulent creamy sauce, which is the only way my son will eat mushrooms besides on a pizza.
I showed my son the video for this recipe and he said “Mmmm, so good!” He is ready to try this stroganoff recipe with ground beef since I’ve stocked up at home. Your kids will love it, too!
Why Make This Lamb Stroganoff Recipe?
Besides the kid endorsement, there is no alcohol in this lamb stroganoff recipe, so you save a few pennies from having to keep alcohol on hand. Also, this is a great dish for those who are allergic to alcohol (gasp!) or who just want to make sure they don’t have their kids accidentally consume any of the alcohol that might not get cooked off if you are in a rush pulling dinner together, especially using a slow cooker.
Moreover, you’re also saving money by using water and extra salt instead of beef broth or stock. By using the lamb bones in the slow cooker, you’re putting extra flavor into the water eliminating the need for broth or stock. Remember, extra money in your pocket is a great bonus with the rising food costs everywhere.
Health Benefits: Mushrooms
Mushrooms are low in calories, have protein and fiber, and lots of vitamins, minerals and other compounds that help to keep you healthy. The antioxidants in mushrooms help to fight inflammation in your body. There are even studies out there to examine whether eating more mushrooms can help lower cancer risk. Gut health, brain health, heart health, and the blood vessels also get a benefit from the potassium, polyphenols, and antioxidants found in mushrooms. There are so many different varieties of mushrooms out there that there is bound to be one or two that you will enjoy once you try them.
I’ve found the best way to have mushrooms in a slow cooker meal is to saute your mushrooms in a pan or in the multipurpose cooker first before turning on the slow cook setting. The mushrooms take up a ton of space in the cooker if you add them raw and you may not be able to close the lid in some recipes. This quick sauté helps to keep the mushrooms tender in this creamy lamb stroganoff without being chewy.
Now, if you have an allergy to mold, you should stay away from mushrooms because they are a fungus. Also don’t eat the wild mushrooms that you suddenly see appear in your backyard after a heavy rain. Keep yourself safe and stick with the ones at the grocery stores and farmers markets.
Health Benefits: Sour Cream
Sour cream is one of those foods that I don’t buy on a weekly or even monthly basis. It’s high in fat and calories and doesn’t have the same volume of vitamins and minerals and other benefits that things like yogurt and cottage cheese do.
However, my family does enjoy the creamy luxuriousness of a sour cream-based sauce. Being able to cook lamb stroganoff or any other kind of creamy dish at home lets me control what vegetables I’m putting in and how much fat and salt is added. When I cook a heavier dish like this, my son (and even sometimes my husband) is less likely to buy a creamy or fried dish at a restaurant when we do go out to eat the next day. We’re looking at the whole person and all the eating habits at home and outside the home, which is why I will gladly make a dish like this to influence better choices overall.
Mix Up this Stroganoff Recipe with Other Protein
Lamb is not something that everyone is going to be able to always fit into their budget. This recipe will work just fine with ground beef and will be much tastier than the Hamburger Helper stroganoff that I ate growing up (though I appreciate them so much because I learned how to cook using those boxes).
If you have leftover pot roast, tri tip roast, or other roasted beef, those will taste great as well. You can cook this stroganoff in the slow cooker with just about any protein that you cooked on a bone and the meat will just fall off and become incredibly tender. It’s a great way to clean up any meat stuck onto pork chop bones that are just stuck on and hard to gnaw off. The sky’s the limit with this recipe.
I’d love to hear what you think of this recipe. Please share your comments below! If you’re loving this dish, check out more dinner recipes below that the whole family will love.
Slow Cooker Lamb Stroganoff (without alcohol)
Equipment
- 1 large cutting board
- 1 chef's knife
- 1 multipurpose cooker or slow cooker
- 1 10" saute pan optional
- 1 5-quart pot
- 1 small bowl
- 1 1.5-quart pot optional
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp butter or olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves chopped
- ½ large onion chopped
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms thickly sliced
- 2 cups cooked lamb meat chopped
- 4 cups lamb chop bones or lamb leg bone
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme (about 1 tsp fresh thyme)
- ½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 cup light sour cream
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp water
- 12 ounces dried egg noodles cooked per package directions
Instructions
- Heat multipurpose cooker to the "Sear" setting. (If using a slow cooker, heat large sauté pan on medium high heat.)
- Add butter or olive oil to multipurpose cooker (or pan), followed by the onions, mushrooms, and garlic. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes until onions and mushrooms soften.
- In the multipurpose cooker, add lamb meat and bones, water, salt, thyme, and black pepper. Stir until everything is combined, making sure that the bones are submerged in the liquid. Change the multipurpose cooker setting from the "Sear" setting to the "Slow Cook" setting.
- (If using a slow cooker, add everything except for the lamb meat and bones to a sauté pan and stir to combine; then transfer everything to a slow cooker. Add the lamb meat and bones and stir well, making sure the bones are submerged in the liquid.)
- Slow cook on low for 6 hours on low or for 3 hours on high.
- Open the multipurpose cooker (or slow cooker). Remove the lamb bones and set them aside.
- Fill a 5-quart pot with water and cook the egg noodles according to the package directions.
- Turn on the “Boil” function on the multipurpose cooker. (If you don’t have a “Boil” function, use the “Sear” function.) Add the Dijon mustard and light sour cream to the multipurpose cooker. Stir to combine and wait until it just starts to boil.
- (If using a slow cooker, pour 2 cups of the sauce from the slow cooker into a 1.5-quart or larger pot and bring to a light boil.)
- In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch and 1 tsp water together then pour into the multipurpose cooker (or pot with sauce if you used a slow cooker). Stir the contents to combine and let boil for 1 to 3 minutes to thicken to your desired preference.
- Take any meat that falls off the lamb bones and return it to the multipurpose cooker. (Return sauce from the small pot, if using a slow cooker.)
- Add the cooked egg noodles to the slow cooker. Stir until the noodles are coated in the sauce.
