
Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff is a slow-cooked version of the traditional Beef Stroganoff. An amazing beef stew, tender and smothered in a creamy stroganoff dressing and buttery garlic mushrooms, it’s made with a budget beef stew but tastes like a million bucks!

Beef Stroganoff
You know, any word that implies “slow cook” and “beef” is going to be a winner. It’s a ripper!
This is a slow-cooked version of the classic beef stroganoff. Besides taking 8 hours in the slow cooker instead of 15 minutes on the stovetop, this braised dressing differs from the traditional version in several ways:
- Splitting tender chunks of beef instead of just cooking thin strips so it’s juicy on the inside;
- made with budget beef stew instead of good to good marbled steak (for a very good traditional so-called essential beef stroganoff); and
- The sauce has a deeper taste – due to the longer cooking time. You can’t take shortcuts with this taste!
This beef stew recipe melts in your mouth and the sauce is incredibly rich!
What you need for Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff
That’s all it takes to make this delicious slow cooker beef dish! It has the same ingredients as traditional beef stroganoff, except it uses economical goulash and more broth so the beef is submerged when slow-cooked.
Use beef chuck or another economical beef stew. Don’t waste your money on more expensive cuts like sirloin!
A few notes on the other ingredients:
- Sour Cream – This is what makes the dressing creamy. It is added at the end to avoid any risk of tearing during slow cooking;
- Dijon mustard – used for seasoning and thickening and is a traditional ingredient in beef stroganoff; and
- Flour – thickens sauce. See recipe notes for gluten-free options!
How to make Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff
It looks a lot like a traditional goulash – entirely by hand for most of the cooking time!
- Brown beef is aggressive. The better the browning, the better the flavor of the sauce and the beef!
- Saute onion and garlic, stir in flour;
- Add everything to slow cooker (or pot);
- 8 hours on low or 5 hours on high (see stovetop and pressure cooker recipes);
- Saute mushrooms with garlic and butter;
- Whip the sour cream with a little liquid in the slow cooker – this will save you from ending up with spots of sour cream in the sauce (don’t stir vigorously or the beef will crumble!);
- Stir mushrooms and sour cream into sauce;
- Serve with mashed potatoes, pasta, egg noodles or even rice!
This is what it looks like straight out of the slow cooker.
And the beef… falling apart… juicy…
Infused with all the flavors of stroganov sauce…
I make it in a stew, but it can easily be made into mashed potatoes and vegetables too. This way it also becomes a meal rather than having noodles or mashed potatoes to serve.
I note in the recipe how to make a soup out of it – just add extra liquid to thin the sauce out a bit, which also adds bulk so you can add more “stuff”.
Alternatively, if you insist on slow cooking the beef stroganoff as directed, serve it over one of the following dishes:
Spaghetti or wide egg noodles (traditional);
Mashed potatoes (also common in stroganoff);
Rice; or
Low Carb Alternatives: Creamy Cauliflower Mash or Cauliflower Rice