Keto beef stroganoff
October 3, 2026 · 3 min read
Stroganoff is a weeknight favorite that usually rides in on a pile of egg noodles. Drop the noodles for cauliflower rice and the rest of the dish is already keto: seared beef, browned mushrooms, and a tangy sour-cream pan sauce that comes together in the same skillet. A bowl lands around 8g net carbs and still tastes like the comfort-food original.
Two things carry it — a hard sear on the beef and a sauce that never boils once the sour cream goes in.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb sirloin steak, thinly sliced against the grain
- Salt, to taste
- Black pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 8 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, to serve
- 1 batch cauliflower rice, to serve
Steps
- Pat the beef dry and season with salt and pepper. Sear it in the olive oil over high heat in batches, about 1 to 2 minutes, just until browned, then move it to a plate. Crowding the pan steams the beef instead of searing it.
- Melt the butter in the same pan. Add the mushrooms and onion and cook until browned and soft, 6 to 7 minutes, then stir in the garlic for 30 seconds.
- Pour in the broth and Dijon, scrape up the browned bits, and simmer until slightly reduced, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Lower the heat and stir in the sour cream until the sauce is smooth. Don't let it boil. Return the beef and its juices and warm through.
- Finish with parsley and serve over cauliflower rice.
How it comes together
Makes 4 servings — read left to right; each column combines what's behind it.
PrepSlice the beef thin against the grain — easier if it's part-frozen — and have everything ready, because the sear and the sauce both move fast.
| 1½ lb · 680 g sirloin steakthinly sliced | Sear the beef | ||||
| saltto taste | |||||
| black pepperto taste | |||||
| 1 tbsp · 14 g olive oil | |||||
| 2 tbsp · 28 g butter | Brown the mushrooms | ||||
| 8 oz · 225 g cremini mushroomssliced | |||||
| ½ onionmedium, thinly sliced | |||||
| 2 cloveses · 6 g garlicminced | |||||
| 1 cup · 240 g beef broth | Deglaze and simmer | ||||
| 1 tsp Dijon mustard | |||||
| ¾ cup · 180 g sour cream | Finish the sauce | ||||
| 2 tbsp parsleychopped, to serve | Serve | ||||
| 1 cauliflower ricebatch, to serve |
Scaling adjusts quantities only — cooking times and pan sizes may need judgment. Grams are rounded for the kitchen.
Notes and swaps
Sirloin slices clean and stays tender with a fast sear, but ribeye or even ground beef work for a cheaper, faster version. Any mushroom is fair game, and a splash of white wine in the deglaze adds depth if you're not counting every carb. For a thicker sauce, let the broth reduce a little longer before the sour cream goes in, or stir in a pinch of xanthan gum off the heat. Full-fat Greek yogurt can stand in for the sour cream, though it's more prone to splitting, so temper it with a spoon of warm sauce first.
Keep the heat low once the sour cream is in. A hard boil is what breaks a dairy sauce into grainy curds.
The macros here are an estimate. Not sure the sour-cream sauce still fits under today's ceiling? Copper Keto Companion keeps your running total, so you'll know before you spoon it over.
FAQ
Is beef stroganoff keto? The classic over egg noodles isn't — the noodles alone run 40g-plus of carbs. Built over cauliflower rice or shirataki, the beef-and-mushroom part is naturally low-carb, landing around 8g net carbs a serving.
Why did my sour cream sauce curdle? Too much heat. Cut the burner to low before the sour cream goes in, stir it through gently, and don't let the sauce return to a boil afterward.
What can I serve it over besides cauliflower rice? Shirataki noodles, mashed cauliflower, or zucchini noodles all soak up the sauce without the carbs. Mashed cauliflower is closest to the traditional noodle feel.
Can I use a cheaper cut of beef? Yes. Thin-sliced chuck or even ground beef work well; just slice against the grain and keep the sear quick so it stays tender.
What's a good dish to rotate it with? If creamy skillet dinners are your lane, keto creamy mushroom chicken uses the same one-pan sauce move with chicken instead of beef.