Put everything except the mushrooms into a large covered casserole dish and back at about 180C (350F) for 30 minutes. Stir well. Bake for a further 60 minutes. Stir well. bake for yet another 60 minutes, stir, and reduce the oven temperature to about 110C (230F) and continue baking. I usually cook mine for around 3 hours, total. Remember, the longer it cooks, the more tender the meat will be, and the more the flavours will permeate. About half an hour before serving, clean and add the fresh mushrooms, which may or may not be cut in halves or quarters, depending on their size. Add to the stroganoff and re-heat, just long enough for the mushrooms to be heated through.

This extremely versatile recipe can be adapted to make any sort of meat, or and vegetable stews and casseroles. Stick to the basic ingredients and cooking times above, but substitute chicken or lamb for the beef, and add 2 to 3 carrots, peeled and cut into bite sized chunks, 3 or 4 sticks of celery, washed and cut into suitably sized pieces, a parsnip, peeled and cut into chunks, and some red and/or green capsicums, de-seeded and cut into strips to add a little bit more colour to the stew/casserole. Another good thing about it is that it can be made in the morning or the day before, and apart from the saucepan for the rice or noodles, there are no messy pots and pans to be cleaned up.