A classic comfort meal, this Beef Tips and Gravy cooks pieces of beef in a homemade gravy until it is super tender and flavorful. Serve over mashed potatoes, rice or noodles for the perfect Sunday supper that the whole family will go crazy over.
When the weather starts to cool down, I’m all about the comfort food recipes! Some other favorites are this Classic Homemade Beef Stew Recipe, Salisbury Steak, and Chicken Pot Pie.
Trying a new recipe isn’t anything new for me. I go through a lot of recipes. Some make it onto the blog here, some get tested time and time again and I can never get the quite right, some I make and vow to never make again (haha) and some are just a one-time dinner.
And while I stand behind every recipe I post here on Taste and Tell, every once in awhile I come across a recipe that I think is the best thing that has come out of my kitchen for awhile.
This Beef Tips and Gravy is one of those recipes.
The night we had this for dinner, my husband wasn’t with us for dinnertime. But after, when he went to eat, I sat closely by, waiting to see if he loved it as much as I did.
Happily, the love was mutual and we both agreed that this was a five star meal.
What are beef tips?
I had to ask myself this same question, because I didn’t really know, either.
So technically, beef tips are pieces that come from the tenderloin that is cut too small for a tenderloin steak.
So why do so many beef tips recipes call for stew meat?
I will admit that I don’t really know the actual answer, but my assumption is that Beef Tips was a recipe that was originally created to use those extra pieces of the tenderloin, but became popular and people started using other cuts of beef instead of just the leftover pieces of tenderloin.
Today, we know it as a dish that has super tender chunks of beef that have been slow simmered in a delicious gravy.
Ingredients
- Beef Chuck Roast – I like to use chuck roast because I find it’s the most tender.
- Salt and Pepper
- Vegetable oil – for browning the meat and cooking the vegetables.
- Onion, Celery, Carrot and Garlic – the best combination!
- Tomato Paste – you’ll only need 2 tablespoons, so I love to buy it in a tube because it makes storing the leftovers easy.
- Flour – this will thicken your gravy.
- Beef Stock – I always have beef broth on hand, but I specifically bought beef stock for this recipe since I wanted that rich flavor.
- Bay Leaf, Thyme and Parsley – these are used to flavor the gravy.
- Red Wine Vinegar – the vinegar helps to balance the flavors and is a little secret weapon that I need to remember to use more often!
- More Parsley – to bring in a bit of a fresh element at the end.
How to Make Beef Tips and Gravy
- Start by cutting your beef into bite-sized pieces. I make them about 1-2 inches long and 1/4-inch thick. Then season it well with salt and pepper.
- Working with about half of the beef at a time, brown the pieces in a hot cast iron skillet with vegetable oil.
- When the beef is browned, remove it all from the skillet to a bowl and add more vegetable oil. Cook the vegetables in the oil until they are softened.
- Add the tomato paste and cook through, then add the flour and cook until it is incorporated.
- Add the stock to the skillet and bring it to a boil, making sure you are scraping all of the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.
- Return the beef and any juices to the skillet, then add the bay leaf, thyme and parsley. Cover the skillet and simmer until the sauce is thickened and the beef is super tender.
- Remove the bay leaf, thyme and parsley.
- Stir in the vinegar and the chopped parsley.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can really use any cut of beef that you want to – from tenderloin to sirloin to chuck roast. And while you could use the stew meat that is already cut from the supermarket, I would suggest that you buy a chuck roast and cut it yourself. Not only is it more economical, but you will also know exactly what you are getting.
I use a chuck roast for this recipe, and find that it has the perfect amount of fat and become so incredibly tender after braising in the cast iron skillet.
My favorite way to serve beef tips is over mashed potatoes. But you can also serve it over rice or noodles – egg noodles are perfect.
The secret here is a low, slow cook. This is not a meal you can have on the table in 30 minutes. A few tips, though – make sure you cut your meat against the grain, and also make sure you’re pieces aren’t too big.
I have not tested this recipe in the slow cooker myself, but I have had readers make this successfully in the crockpot.
More Comfort Food Recipes
One Pot Ground Beef Stroganoff
Biscuits and Sausage Gravy
Chicken a la King
Braised Country Style Ribs
Slow Cooker Pot Roast
Crock Pot Chili
Traditional Meatloaf Recipe with Brown Sugar and Ketchup Glaze
Poppy Seed Chicken
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Beef Tips and Gravy
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless beef chuck
- Kosher salt
- Ground pepper
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil divided
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 2 stalks of celery diced
- 1 carrot diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 cups beef stock*
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 sprigs of thyme
- 3 stems of Italian parsley
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons minced Italian parsley
Instructions
- Cut the beef chuck into small strips, about 1 to 2-inches in length and 1/4-inch thick. Season generously with salt and pepper.
- Preheat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the oil and swirl to coat the skillet. Add half of the beef and cook, turning halfway through, until browned on both sides, 5-6 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the beef from the skillet into a bowl, then sear the remaining half of the beef.
- Decrease the heat to medium and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the onion and cook until it starts to soften, then add the celery and carrot and continue to cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then stir in the tomato paste.
- Add the flour and stir through, until no dry flour remains.
- Slowly start whisking in the beef stock. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly and scraping up all of the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low. Return the beef to the skillet, along with any juices that have accumulated. Add the bay leaf, thyme, and stems of parsley. Put a lid on the skillet and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened and the beef is tender, 2 1/4 to 2 1/2 hours. If needed, cook uncovered the last half hour to get to your desired thickness.
- Discard the bay leaf, thyme and parsley stems.
- Stir in the red wine vinegar and minced parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Serve hot.
Danny Massingale says
Awesome just Awesome
I added fresh mushrooms for an extra kick!
Susan Ripley says
Great recipe. Modified it by blending the gravy to make it smooth….getting grandkids to eat veggies!!! Hubby loves it! Thanks.
Erik Groth says
Restaurant quality!
Mark says
This was amazing! Every bit of it was delicious. I didn’t change a thing. Served it over creamy mashed potatoes with steamed broccoli. My teenage daughter never, and I mean never puts anything but turkey gravy on her potatoes. Let’s just say that I wasted a pot of turkey gravy, because it never got touched. The flavors were so developed and velvety. Absolutely fantastic! Appreciate you and your sharing.
Natalie M says
This recipe was an absolute hit! The meat is SO tender and it’s so flavorful. I started making this last year and tonight I’m about to cook it again! It’s one of our favorite comfort foods for fall.
JMiller says
So so good!!! Used better than boullion for my stock, added extra veggies but took out half before adding the paste and added back in with the beef! Put in the over lid on at 275 for 3 hours. Flavors awesome and beef so tender! Served with mashed potatoes. Awesome leftovers and 3 and 4yo approved!!
Jan says
This was great. I did add a few sliced mushrooms but everything else was as stated. I also finished it in the oven @275 for 3-4 hours covered. So tender and great flavor. Thank you!
Amanda Contreras says
This recipe was quick and easy!!! My boys loved loved loved it!!! I made mine over rice and the rice had a nice amount of saturation from the gravy. Will make this again, also wanted to point out I’am HORRIBLE at wishing together a gravy, but this was easy, and in fact I believe I have more confidence in making future gravy dishes.
Nicole says
Delicious recipe! Foolproof. I add better than buillon beef base for added color and richness. However, recipe is really good with zero changes!
Maura says
I used almond flour to make it gluten free and everyone loved this dinner (even the kiddos!). We served over spaetzle for some and mashed potatoes for others.
Liz says
This was fabulous. I was skeptical about the vinegar at the end but it just absolutely tied everything together. This definitely is a new twist on a boring roast. I had all the fresh herbs & veggies from my garden which was so great to use up.
Karl Pearson says
Thanks for sharing, very easy meal turned out great!
Christine Moore says
My husband adores this recipe. Can you finish it off in the oven?
Deborah says
I haven’t tried, but I’m guessing that you could!
Danielle says
This looks delicious! Definitely going to add the ingredients to the shopping list so we can make it for Sunday dinner!
Harriet says
This looks absolutely delicious. I just love the way you photographed this recipe; the gravy looks thick and rich. This is my kind of dish, I have pinned it for later.
cake lover says
nice tips… thanks for sharing