The Best Beef Tips Recipe | Super Tender Beef In A Rich Brown Gravy! (2024)

These easy stovetop Beef Tips and Gravy are the ultimate comfort food meal! Tender beef tips are cooked slowly in a rich brown gravy until they’re so tender that they almost fall apart. Serve them over mashed potatoes or rice for your new favorite dinner!

Table of Contents

• Stovetop Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe
• What Are Beef Tips?
• What Can I Use In Place Of Gravy Packets?
• What To Serve With Beef Tips?
• Get the Recipe

Stovetop Beef Tips and Gravy Recipe

If you are looking for a true comfort food style dinner, look no further than these tender beef tips in a rich, savory brown gravy. Slowly cooked on the stove top, these beef tips are guaranteed to be fork tender and full of flavor. And when we say tender, we mean it! The beef tips will fall apart on your fork, making each gravy covered bite even better than the last.

While this recipe does require your time, don’t worry – it won’t tax your patience too much. The steps here are easy to follow, and the list of ingredients is simple and inexpensive. Plus, we haven’t met anyone (besides a vegan or two) that doesn’t love this delectable beef tips recipe! Serve your beef tips over some rice or our favorite Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes and we promise the whole family will be very happy with dinner!

Love this recipe for beef tips and gravy but don’t have the time to watch the beef on the stove top? Make sure to check out our easy recipe for Instant Pot Beef Tips! It’s a more hands off style of recipe, letting the instant pot do most of the work.

What Are Beef Tips?

Beef tips are bite size pieces of beef, traditionally the leftover scrap cuts off a beef tenderloin, cooked until fork tender in a savory brown gravy. However, beef tips have grown in popularity and many grocery stores now carry different cuts of meat and label them as beef tips. Anything from pieces of sirloin to stew meat can be labeled as beef tips.

Tenderloin beef tips will produce the most tender beef bites, but sirloin beef tips are a close second! Stew meat will come in third for how tender it will become. Stew meat is usually made from a rump roast or chuck roast, both of which are a tougher cut of meat. They will work in this recipe as well, but may need a little more time cooking until they are fork tender.

We like to purchase a whole beef tenderloin for my husband to cut our own filets for steaks. When we do this, we usually wind up with small pieces of tenderloin that are not big enough to grill. We always cut those pieces into bite size pieces to make these amazing beef tips and gravy!

Ingredients

• Beef Tips: The meat needs to be room temp, so make sure you leave it out on the kitchen counter for about 30 minutes prior to cooking.
• Salt and Pepper: Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper always taste the best.
• Olive Oil: You can also use vegetable oil, canola oil or avocado oil in this recipe.
• Onion: Yellow onions have a natural sweetness to them which makes them ideal for this recipe.
• Garlic: Use fresh minced garlic for the most flavor.
• Beef Broth: To avoid a salty gravy, use a low sodium beef broth.
• Worcestershire Sauce: This adds a lovely umami flavor to the sauce.
• Beef Better than Bouillon: Alternatively, you could use two beef bouillon cubes instead.
• Gravy Packets: Don’t worry! This gravy’s so dressed up, no one will ever know you used store bought dry gravy packets. It’s our little secret that adds even more flavor and is super easy. If you are worried about the amount of salt, you can use low sodium gravy packets.

How to Make Beef Tips and Gravy

Season. Season the beef tips with salt and pepper.

Sear. In a medium skillet, heat olive oil to medium-high heat. Sear the seasoned beef tips on both sides. Make sure to allow the skillet with oil to get hot before adding the meat, this will ensure a good sear!

Sauté. Reduce the heat to low, then add the onion and garlic. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until the onion has softened.

Bring to a simmer. Add 1 cup of the beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, and beef bouillon, stirring till fully combine. Cover loosely with a lid.

Cook till tender. Continue cooking the beef tips, stirring occasionally, for 1 to 2 hours. The longer the beef tips simmer, the more tender they become. You can add a little more beef broth, if needed.

Make the gravy. Right before you are ready to serve, whisk to combine the gravy packets with the remaining 1 cup of low-sodium beef broth. Pour the gravy mixture into the skillet and stir to combine.

Thicken the gravy. Raise heat to medium and bring the gravy to a simmer, cooking for about 2 to 4 minutes, until the gravy has thickened.

Enjoy! Remove from heat and serve as desired over rice, mashed potatoes, or egg noodles.

Tips for the Best Beef Tips

• Use A Good Cut Of Beef: If you scroll up to the section labeled, “What Are Beef Tips?” you will find a lot of information about the different cuts of beef tips. We recommend using tenderloin or sirloin beef tips, if possible, for the most tender beef.
• Don’t rush it: This recipe takes time, but the results are worth the wait. If you turn up the temperature and try to cook the meat faster, it will turn out tough.
• Beef Flavor: I like to boost the beef flavor by using a combination of Better than Bouillon (in beef flavor), low sodium beef broth and beef gravy packets.
• Lower Sodium: If you are concerned about the amount of sodium in this recipe, you can cut it back by using no salt added beef broth, low sodium gravy packets and low sodium bouillon.
• Check Your Meat: Make sure to test how tender your beef tips are before adding the gravy. If they are not fork tender, add a little more beef broth and simmer the beef a little longer, until tender. (Once you add the gravy, you don’t want to keep cooking the meat. The gravy will thicken and not be the correct texture.)

What Can I Use In Place Of Gravy Packets?

Don’t have any gravy packets on hand? Don’t worry! You can also use cornstarch. We like to use gravy packets as they have a little added beef flavor/seasonings add to them. However, you can use cornstarch in place of the gravy packets. You will possibly need to season the gravy, to taste, if your gravy is a little lacking in flavor.

To Use Cornstarch In Place Of Gravy Packets:

1. You will need 1/3 cup cornstarch to replace the two gravy packets.
2. When the recipe below calls for the gravy packets to be added, instead whisk to combine the 1/3 cup cornstarch with the 1 cup of cold (or room temperature) beef broth.
3. Add the beef broth and cornstarch mixture to your pot and cook as directed in the recipe.
4. Once the gravy has thickened, taste the gravy to ensure it is seasoned to your tastes. If your beef tips aren’t popping flavor wise, they probably need a little more salt added.

What To Serve With Beef Tips?

Savory beef tips and gravy are commonly served over mashed potatoes, rice or egg noodles. There is no wrong way, just whichever you personally prefer! I find most people serve them however their mom served them growing up. If your mom served them over rice, you probably will love them best that way too! It’s all about that comfort feeling you get eating yummy food with good memories.

We personally love them best served over mashed potatoes with some kind of yummy veggie on the side! Here are a few of our favorites vegetable dishes that would pair well:

• Air Fryer Brussel Sprouts
• Southern Green Beans with Bacon
• French Onion Sautéed Mushrooms
• Skillet Fried Corn

Storing Leftovers

Fridge: In an airtight container in the fridge, any leftovers you may have will stay fresh for up to 5 days. You can reheat your beef tips either in the microwave or back on the stovetop.

Freezer: Want this recipe to stay fresh for even longer? Pop it into the freezer, where it’ll stay fresh for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge, before you reheat it, for best results.

More Easy Beef Recipes

Looking for more easy dinner recipes using beef? Here are a few more of our favorites:

• Easy Shepherd’s Pie Recipe
• The Best Taco Meat
• Instant Pot Beef Stew
• Air Fryer Steak Kabobs
• Easy Chili Mac
• Instant Pot Taco Soup
• Crockpot Shredded Beef
• Instant Pot Beef Tips