Beef in Mustard Cream Sauce with Buckwheat and Dill Cucumber Salad

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the beef and vegetables

   Pat the beef dry and cut it across the grain into strips about 1 cm wide. Season with 2 g of salt and the pepper. Slice the mushrooms, finely chop the onion, and mince the garlic.

   
2. 2

   Cook the buckwheat

   Rinse the buckwheat in a sieve. Bring 560 ml of water and 3 g of salt to a boil in a pot, add the buckwheat, cover, and simmer over low heat for 12 to 15 minutes, until the water has been absorbed. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes.

   
3. 3

   Sear the beef and mushrooms

   Heat 15 ml of oil in a large pan until it shimmers lightly. Sear the beef in two batches, for about 1 minute per batch, so it browns without starting to stew. Transfer it to a plate. Add the mushrooms to the same pan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, until browned and most of their liquid has evaporated.

   
4. 4

   Finish the sauce

   Add the onion and the remaining 10 ml of oil to the mushrooms. Cook for 3 minutes until softened, then stir in the garlic, tomato paste, and paprika. After 30 seconds, pour in the broth and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Return the beef and any juices from the plate to the pan and simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes, until the meat is tender. Mix the sour cream with the mustard and two tablespoons of the hot sauce, then stir it into the pan off the heat. Do not boil.

   
5. 5

   Prepare the cucumber and serve

   Cut the cucumber into thin half-moons. Toss it with the vinegar, finely chopped dill, the remaining 1 g of salt, and the remaining 5 ml of oil. Fluff the buckwheat with a fork. Divide the buckwheat, beef with sauce, and cucumber among plates; serve while the beef is warm and the salad is cool and crisp.