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Steak Tips with Mushrooms and Sour Cream Sauce

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on October 29, 2008

Time

30 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Steak Tips with Mushrooms and Sour Cream Sauce

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds sirloin steak tips, cut into 2-inch chunksSalt and pepper 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 10 ounces white mushrooms, sliced2 shallots, halved and sliced thin¾ cup low-sodium beef broth ½ cup brandy 1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh thyme ½ cup sour cream 2 tablespoons coarse-grain mustard

Before You Begin

Steak tips, also known as flap meat, are sold as whole steaks, cubes, and strips. To ensure evenly sized chunks, we prefer to purchase whole steak tips and cut them ourselves. Serve over rice or buttered egg noodles.

Instructions

  1. Pat steak tips dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add meat and cook until well browned all over, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to serving platter and tent with foil.
  2. Heat remaining oil in empty skillet until shimmering. Cook mushrooms, shallots, and ¼ teaspoon salt, covered, until vegetables have softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in broth, brandy, and thyme and simmer until reduced by half, about 7 minutes. Off heat, stir in sour cream, mustard, and any accumulated steak juices. Season with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over meat. Serve.
Steak Tips with Mushrooms and Sour Cream Sauce

Steak Tips with Mushrooms and Sour Cream Sauce

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

30 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds sirloin steak tips, cut into 2-inch chunks
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
10 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
2 shallots, halved and sliced thin
¾ cup low-sodium beef broth
½ cup brandy
1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh thyme
½ cup sour cream
2 tablespoons coarse-grain mustard

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds sirloin steak tips, cut into 2-inch chunks
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
10 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
2 shallots, halved and sliced thin
¾ cup low-sodium beef broth
½ cup brandy
1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh thyme
½ cup sour cream
2 tablespoons coarse-grain mustard

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds sirloin steak tips, cut into 2-inch chunks
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
10 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
2 shallots, halved and sliced thin
¾ cup low-sodium beef broth
½ cup brandy
1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh thyme
½ cup sour cream
2 tablespoons coarse-grain mustard

Why This Recipe Works

We prepared the sauce in the same pan we cooked the mushrooms and steaks to build layers of flavor for our Steak Tips with Mushrooms and Sour Cream Sauce. It was important to make sure the pan was very hot before adding the steak tips. Cooking steaks in a pan that wasn’t properly preheated led to meat that overcooked before developing a good crust. We tempered the sour cream with any accumulated steak juices to prevent it from curdling once we added it to the sauce.

Before You Begin

Steak tips, also known as flap meat, are sold as whole steaks, cubes, and strips. To ensure evenly sized chunks, we prefer to purchase whole steak tips and cut them ourselves. Serve over rice or buttered egg noodles.

Instructions

  1. Pat steak tips dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add meat and cook until well browned all over, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to serving platter and tent with foil.
  2. Heat remaining oil in empty skillet until shimmering. Cook mushrooms, shallots, and ¼ teaspoon salt, covered, until vegetables have softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in broth, brandy, and thyme and simmer until reduced by half, about 7 minutes. Off heat, stir in sour cream, mustard, and any accumulated steak juices. Season with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over meat. Serve.

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