Korv Stroganoff

One of the best things about living here is that the kitchen is very spacious, cool, and well equipped.  It is in here that I feel comfortable enough to try out new recipes - recipes that I wouldn't have tried when I was back home.  Also, some of the ingredients are cheaper here. Dairy and wheat products, especially, are much cheaper so I usually have my pantry well stocked so that I could whip something up whenever I feel like it or whenever I come across good recipes.  Especially when the recipe comes with drool-inducing pictures.

I have been cooking a lot of different types of food here - Malay, Chinese, Indian, and of course Swedish. It's not too difficult to make the Swedish dishes halal since I can get halal meats easily here. A dish that Pete has been asking for quite often is korv stroganoff. Korv is the Swedish thick sausage that is usually made of pork. Here, there are many types of halal sausages sold so it was easy to just pick one out that is made of chicken, beef or turkey.

Although stroganoff is a Russian dish, it has become popular in Sweden for many years.  Here, the sausage is cut into smaller pieces and cooked in a creamy tomato sauce.  It's usually served with rice and salad.  Pete remembers eating the dish when he was in school.  Before I cooked it, I have never tasted it before since I couldn't find a halal version of it sold elsewhere.  One day, after repeated requests from Pete to cook him that dish, I googled a recipe and found a super simple one.  After trying it out, I didn't know why I didn't cook it earlier.  It really is simple and fast to cook.  I can imagine busy Swedish moms coming home after work and spending less than 30 mins in the kitchen to produce a simple, hearty supper for her family. 

So I will share the recipe here.  It might be difficult to find juicy, thick halal sausages back home, but any decent quality sausage should do the trick.  I found it a bit odd to eat cream-based gravy with rice at first. I'm so used to eating spicy gravy with rice, I guess, but in the end, I got used to eating creamy stroganoff or stews with rice.  But if you don't like that idea, you can also serve this with pasta. This recipe makes a tasty pasta sauce too.

Korv Stroganoff

1 big white onion, sliced

400g sausages, cut into strips (size of thick-cut fries)

2tbsp tomato purée 

400g can of crushed tomatoes

300ml cream

Pepper to taste

Sauté the onions. 

Once they're translucent, add the sausages and cook until they start to brown.

Add the tomato purée and cook for about 2mins.

Add the crushed tomatoes and mix well.

Lastly, add the cream and pepper to taste.   

Voila! It's done!