Brazilian Chicken Stroganoff

If you’ve ever wanted to eat like a movie star, now’s your chance! It turns out that one of Matthew McConaughey’s favorite dishes is a tasty South American take on stroganoff. Camila Alves, Matthew’s wife, makes a Brazilian chicken stroganoff recipe as part of her Christmas Eve spread, although it’s not a traditional holiday dish in Brazil. While Camila’s holiday version has a couple of specialty ingredients and a handful of steps, our quick and easy take is perfect for weeknight dinners.

What is Brazilian stroganoff?

The original Russian version of stroganoff, which is made with beef and typically served over egg noodles, features a lush sour cream and mushroom sauce. In comparison, the Brazilian variation can be made with chicken, shrimp or beef and is commonly ladled onto white rice instead of noodles. The mushroom sauce is made with heavy whipping cream instead of sour cream and is augmented with zingy tomato paste and a variety of spices that give it a pretty pink color.

Ingredients for Brazilian Chicken Stroganoff

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• Olive oil: I prefer extra virgin olive oil to olive oil for its health benefits and punchy flavor. Make sure to let the oil get hot in the pan before adding the mushrooms.
• Crimini mushrooms: Crimini shrooms have more flavor than white button mushrooms and brown up nicely in a hot skillet. They’re like portobello mushrooms but smaller.
• Spices: Buy some Goya Sazon seasoning or whip up your own combo of spices to flavor your chicken stroganoff recipe. One good mix is a blend of smoked paprika, coriander, cumin, ground black pepper and chipotle powder.
• Aromatic vegetables and herbs: Refogado, which is garlic and onion blended with olive oil, is the Portuguese answer to Spanish sofrito. Refogado is the basis for many savory Brazilian dishes. This recipe adds some fresh oregano for a little herbal boost.
  
• Tomato paste: Tomato paste gives the sauce a beautiful rosy color without adding too much liquid. Frying the paste for a couple of minutes before adding the cream lends a slightly richer, caramelized taste. Our best tomato paste recipes will help you use up extras.
  
• Heavy cream: Heavy cream gives the stroganoff sauce a lush quality that can’t be replicated with lower-fat ingredients. Using sour cream instead will bring the dish back toward its Russian roots.
• Dijon mustard: This recipe includes a few acidic ingredients that cut through the fatty sauce and make it mouthwatering. The flavor of store-bought or homemade Dijon mustard works particularly well in this dish.
• Red wine vinegar: Zingy vinegar marries the tomato flavor and the cream. Both red or white wine vinegar would work equally well, as would sherry vinegar.
• Chicken breast: This recipe was developed with breasts from free-range organic chickens, which have a denser texture and more flavor than their conventional counterparts.
• White rice: Long-grain white rice is cooked separately from the sauce and meat in this Brazilian stroganoff chicken recipe. It’s used as the base in place of the usual egg noodles.
• Potato sticks: Crispy, crunchy canned potato sticks are the most traditional garnish for this recipe. Crushed potato chips work nicely too.

Directions

Step 1: Start the veggies

Sarah Tramonte for Taste of Home

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a 12-inch, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat until the oil shimmers. Add the fresh sliced mushrooms and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushroom slices have released their liquid and the slices are a rich brown color, seven to eight minutes.

Sarah Tramonte for Taste of Home

Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine the onion, garlic, oregano and remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Process until the combo is finely chopped.

Sarah Tramonte for Taste of Home

Scoop the mixture into the pan with the mushrooms. Cook, stirring constantly, until the onion mixture is lightly browned, two to three minutes.

Step 2: Cook the chicken

Sarah Tramonte for Taste of Home

Add the tomato paste to the pan and continue stirring until it darkens in color, another two to three minutes. Stir in the seasoning blend, heavy cream, mustard, vinegar, bay leaves and chicken cubes. Stir to coat the chicken with sauce. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is fully cooked, 10 to 15 minutes.

Turn off the heat and let the mixture sit in the hot pan on the burner for an additional five minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaves.

Step 3: Serve

Serve over hot white rice with potato sticks or crushed potato chips as a garnish.

Sarah Tramonte for Taste of Home

Brazilian Chicken Stroganoff Variations

• Make it with shrimp: This dish is already a quickie, but it’s even faster when you make it with shrimp. Cleaned, shell-on or off shrimp will cook and be ready to serve in just two or three minutes.
• Add wine: Instead of vinegar, you could flavor this dish with white or rosé wine. Add up to 1/4 cup vino when you make the sauce.
• Try some hot spices: Our Brazilian stroganoff chicken recipe uses just a touch of smoky chipotle powder, but this dish can take some additional heat. If you enjoy spice, amp up the quantity of chipotle or try stirring in some cayenne or ancho chile powder.

How to Store Brazilian Chicken Stroganoff

It’s best to package extra rice separately from the chicken and its sauce. Both components should be stored in tightly sealed storage containers in the fridge.

How long does Brazilian chicken stroganoff last?

Rice is surprisingly perishable, so make sure it makes its way to the fridge as soon as it’s cool for safety. Eat all leftovers within three days.

Can you freeze Brazilian chicken stroganoff?

Because the sauce includes cream—and sometimes creamy sauces break in the freezer—we wouldn’t recommend freezing leftovers of Brazilian chicken stroganoff.

How do you reheat Brazilian chicken stroganoff?

The easiest way to reheat this dish is to combine the rice and the sauce and cook it in the microwave or a 350° oven until heated through. You can also warm it on the stovetop in a pan with a little bit of water added, stirring occasionally.

Brazilian Chicken Stroganoff Tips

Sarah Tramonte for Taste of Home

Can you make a Brazilian chicken stroganoff recipe in a slow cooker?

You can! (After all, you can convert most recipes for the slow cooker.) To make sure the meat doesn’t overcook, consider using bone-in chicken breasts or chicken thighs instead of cubed breast meat. Layer all the ingredients in the slow cooker, add an additional cup of water or chicken stock, and check your slow cooker’s instruction booklet to figure out how long to cook the dish.

Can you make a Brazilian chicken stroganoff recipe in an Instant Pot?

With a little background knowledge, you can convert many recipes to the Instant Pot. In this instance, an Instant Pot will make quick work of chicken stroganoff. Again, it will work best if you use chicken thighs instead of cubed breast. Follow the first step in the recipe using the saute setting, add the remaining ingredients plus 1/2 cup water or chicken stock, and consult your Instant Pot instruction book to figure out how long to pressure-cook the chicken.

What else can you serve with Brazilian chicken stroganoff?

Along with white rice, I love to serve this dish with a side of quick corn and black bean salad. Follow it up with pacoca, a no-bake Brazilian treat made with peanuts and sweetened condensed milk.