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Home » Recipes » Fall Dishes

Beef Tips and Gravy

Published: Aug 3, 2024 by Marye

Beef tips and gravy has been a comfort food favorite for decades. This version is updated with a generous amount of red wine, poblano pepper, and guijillo pepper - just as comforting but a lot more flavorful.
Total time for the recipe to be finished.Total Time 3 hours hours 35 minutes minutes
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A closeup of a serving of this recipe on a plate.
Close up of beef tips and gravy with text for Pinterest.

Does anyone besides me remember big Sunday dinners at Grandma's? Tender beef tips in rich gravy spooned over hot mashed potatoes were my favorite!

Start your own Sunday dinner tradition with this delicious vintage recipe! It's inexpensive and melt-in-your-mouth tender!

Tender beef tips in a rich gravy spooned over mashed potatoes on a plate.
Table of Contents
  • 🗝️ Key takeaways
  • 🧾 Ingredients
  • 📖 Variations
  • 🔪 Instructions
  • 🍴 Equipment
  • 🥫 How to store leftover beef tips & gravy
  • Marye's Tip o' the day
  • 💭 Things to know
  • 👩‍🍳 FAQs
  • 📚 Related recipes
  • 🍽️ Serve with...
  • 🍽️ Repurpose leftovers
  • 📞 The last word
  • 📖 Recipe
  • Beef tips & gravy
  • 💬 Comments

Save this recipe by clicking on the ❤️ heart on the right-hand side of the screen or in the recipe card.

🗝️ Key takeaways

  • I love the hearty, old-fashioned flavor of this beef recipe. Plus you'll get lots of leftovers. Be sure to check the section on repurposing them for some inspiration!
  • Beef tips and gravy is perfect for Sunday dinners and big family meals but it's also great for breaking up into several smaller meals and freezing.
  • Searing the meat seals in the juices and caramelizes the outside so every bite is juicy, beefy goodness.

If you think of chewy meat chunks (of questionable origin) in gloppy, bland gravy when you read the words beef tips and gravy then you've got it all wrong. I'm going to fix your perception right now.

I think the dish was created to use up the pieces of beef that were too small for stew meat -- although some people do use stew meat.

This beef tips recipe can be made from almost any cut of beef.

I prefer to use a chuck roast and then cut the pieces about half the size that I would for stew. It's often more economical to do it that way, too.

The beef simmers on the stove or in a slow cooker until it's just melt-in-your-mouth tender.

My version of beef tips and gravy is done so that the gravy thickens while the beef is cooking and you don't have to do anything else - unless you'd like it thicker.

And, y'all know... I have to get my Texas flavors in it so in went poblano and guijillo chiles. The poblano has a velvety heat to it - just comfortable not overwhelming - while the guijillo adds a fruity-spicy flavor that blends well with the beef and other ingredients.

Yep - it's definitely mid 20th century diner food but I promise you've never tasted anything quite like it - you'll love this hearty meal!

🧾 Ingredients

Is there anything that screams Mom's (or Grandma's) kitchen more than beef tips and gravy?

This classic comfort food has been warming hungry bellies for decades.The whole family will love this updated version with a lighter gravy and a little punch from poblano and guijillo chiles.

This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the green recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.

Ingredients for beef tips.

📖 Variations

  1. Substitute more beef broth or ginger ale for the red wine.
  2. Leave out the guijillo pepper.
  3. Use bell peppers instead of poblano.
  4. Cook this in the slow cooker - instructions in the recipe card.

🔪 Instructions

This is an overview of the instructions. Full instructions are in the green recipe card at the bottom of the page. Click on the image to see it full size.

Seasoned flour mixture in a bowl.

Cut beef in bite sized pieces. Mix the flour, salt, pepper, and smoked paprika in a large bowl.

Beef that has been dredged in the flour mixture.

With your hands mix the cut meat in the flour until all sides are covered.

Mushroooms in a dutch oven.

Melt the butter in a heavy iron skillet or dutch oven. Add the mushrooms and saute until golden brown.

Onions and peppers in the dutch oven being sauteed with the cooked mushrooms.

Add the onion and poblano pepper. Saute about 3 minutes.

The seasoned beef is added to the dutch oven.

Remove the vegetables from the skillet Add the beef and quickly sear.

Wine and beef stock being added to the dutch oven.

Remove the beef. Add the wine and most of the beef stock.

Beef stock mixture is simmering with a guijillo chile added to it.

Bring the broth mixture to a simmer and drop in the Guijillo pepper.

All of the ingredients added to the simmering liquid in the dutch oven.

Add the beef and the onion mixture to the simmering broth. Simmer on low heat 3 hours.

🤫 Cook's secrets -

If you'd like it thicker at the end of cooking remove the cover for the last 30 minutes and let the liquid reduce - but watch it carefully so it doesn't go dry.

🍴 Equipment

  • dutch oven or crockpot
  • cutting board
  • chef's knife

🥫 How to store leftover beef tips & gravy

Store leftover beef tips and gravy covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Reheat in the microwave or on top of the stove.

You can add the leftovers to freezer bags or freezer containers and freeze for up to 3 months.

Overhead view of a pot of the finished beef tips.
Beef tips and gravy is the ultimate comfort food.

Marye's Tip o' the day

When you are working with hot oil watch it carefully! It can catch fire if left unattended. Don't let it get to the point it is smoking.

💭 Things to know

  1. If you don't like mushrooms leave them out
  2. If you adore mushrooms add a few more
  3. Use a full bodied red wine like a pinot noir
  4. If you'd like a bit more onion flavor add an envelope of onion soup mix
  5. Dredging the meat in the flour mixture helps the sauce to thicken as it simmers. If you'd like it thicker at the end of cooking remove the cover for the last 30 minutes and let the liquid reduce - but watch it carefully so it doesn't go dry. If it's still not thick enough for you add cornstarch as suggested in the recipe.
  6. Sometimes I like to add some of this steak rub to the flour dredge for even more flavor.

👩‍🍳 FAQs

Have other questions? Ask me in the comments!

What's the best kind of meat for beef tips?

You may sometimes find a package of meat labeled beef tips but more often your choices will be stew meat, sirloin tip, or chuck roast. You can actually use tenderloin, steak, or whatever cut of meat you happen to have on hand.

How do I get my beef tips tender?

Cook low and slow. My recipe also contains wine in the simmer sauce which helps tenderize the meat as well.

How long does it take to cook beef tips?

2 to 3 hours at least or 8 hours in the slow cooker.

How do you tenderize beef tips?

If you have a particularly tough cut of meat you can pound the cut pieces with a mallet or marinate overnight.

How long do you cook beef tips in the oven?

Cook covered at 325F for 3 hours.

A close up of a spoon serving beef tips from a pot

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🍽️ Serve with...

I think you'll love this updated beef tips and gravy recipe. The addition of red wine, poblano, and guijillo adds SO much flavor!

Want to get the whole experience of eating from a vintage 1950s diner menu? Give this a try! It's perfect for a chilly day!

Overhead view of a bowl of garlic mashed potatoes for feature image.

Garlicky, rustic red skinned mashed potatoes hold up to all the flavors in the rich gravy. My favorite side for this meal!


Overhead view of brussels sprouts in a serving dish.

Bacon brussels sprouts are roasted to perfection and full of flavor.


Closeup of a slice of pie for feature image.

Candy apple pie tastes almost like a trip to the State Fair! It's so good and the perfect dessert to remind you fall is on its way.

🍽️ Repurpose leftovers

  1. Pot pie. Use the beef tips and gravy as a filling for a savory pot pie. Add some mixed vegetables, cover with pie crust or puff pastry, and bake until golden brown.
  2. Hot sandwiches. Serve the beef tips and gravy over slices of toasted, thick bread for a hearty open-faced sandwich.
  3. Beef and vegetable soup. Add the beef tips and gravy to a pot of broth with vegetables and potatoes for a hearty beef and vegetable soup.

📞 The last word

Do you remember the old diners or am I the only one?

We used to go to one that, in retrospect, looked like an Airstream trailer. It was all chrome and Art Deco design on the outside but on the inside it smelled like everything good.

Yeasty dinner rolls, beef gravy, apple pie, chocolate cake... all of those smells mingled to make a scent I wish a candle company would make. The aromas would band together and just snuggle up to your nose the minute you walked through the doors.

The floor was big red and white squares of vinyl tile and the booths had over-stuffed, cherry red seats with a wide white stripe vertically down the center.

The tables had chrome edges and red marble-looking tops. There was a little personal juke box right by the salt and pepper shakers and catsup at each table.

I never wanted to sit at the tables. I always led my dad over to the counter where chrome stools with bright red seats stood in a line ready to support whoever wished to sit there.

The stools were my favorite because they twirled. The counter was my dad's favorite because that's where they kept the chocolate cake in big glass domes.

Blue plate specials were cheap and hearty with generous servings... and quite often consisted of beef tips over mashed potatoes.

Nine times out of ten that was what I ordered so I guess this recipe is kind of an homage to that diner.

If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need.

If you love this recipe please comment below and give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

📖 Recipe

A closeup of a serving of this recipe on a plate.

Beef Tips and Gravy

4.66 from 81 votes
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Beef tips and gravy has been a comfort food favorite for decades. This version is updated with a generous amount of red wine, poblano pepper, and guijillo pepper - just as comforting but a lot more flavorful.
Course dinner
Cuisine American - Vintage
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours hours 20 minutes minutes
Total Time: 3 hours hours 35 minutes minutes
Servings:8
Calories:484
Author:Marye Audet-White

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds beef tips, or boneless chuck roast
  • ⅓ cup flour
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • ¼ cup butter
  • 8 ounces button mushrooms, sliced if large
  • 1 ½ cups onion, chopped
  • 1 Poblano pepper, diced
  • ¼ cup oil, your favorite
  • 3 cups beef stock, from a 32 ounce carton - reserve the other cup of stock in case you need it
  • ½ cup red wine
  • 1 guijillo pepper, seeds removed...optional

Instructions

  • Remove the silvery membrane from the roast with a sharp knife.
  • Cut in bite sized pieces.
  • MIx the flour, salt, pepper, and smoked paprika in a large bowl.
  • With your hands mix the cut meat in the flour until all sides are covered. Set aside.
  • Melt the butter in a heavy iron skillet or dutch oven.
  • Add the mushrooms and saute until golden brown.
  • Add the onion and poblano pepper.
  • Saute about 3 minutes.
  • Remove the vegetables from the skillet and set aside.
  • Add oil to the skillet and heat until it pops. Watch carefully!
  • Add the beef and quickly sear the meat on all sides - it should be a nice golden brown.
  • Turn the heat down to low. Remove the beef from the skillet and set aside.
  • Add the wine and most of the beef stock, reserving about a cup and a half. You may or may not need it.
  • Bring the broth mixture to a simmer, scraping the bottom with the spatula to scrape up any meat that stuck, and drop in the Guijillo pepper.
  • Simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Add the beef and the onion mixture to the simmering broth.
  • Cover, leaving a small crack for steam to escape and simmer on low heat for 3 hours, stirring and scraping the bottom once in awhile to keep the meat from sticking. Make sure it doesn't boil dry - add more stock if you need to!!!
  • At the end of 3 hours the meat should be very tender and the gravy will have thickened - if it hasn't you can bring it up to a boil and boil for a few minutes with the cover off to let the liquid reduce.
  • If it still doesn't seem thick enough to you add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to ½ cup of the reserved beef stock and stir until dissolved. Add to the pan and stir. Simmer until thickened.
  • Serve over mashed potatoes, rice, noodles, grits, biscuits, or whatever you like.

Slow Cooker

  • Follow steps 1 through 11 above, browning the meat and sauteeing the vegetables.
  • Add everything to the slow cooker and set on low.
  • Cook for 8 hours.

Oven

  • Follow through step 11.
  • If you've made the beef tips in a cast iron or enamel over cast iron dutch oven you can cover it and put it in your oven at 325°F for 3 hours. OR you can ladle the mixture into a large casserole, cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 325°F for 3 hours. Be sure to check that it doesn't go dry.

Notes

Expert Tip: When you are working with hot oil watch it carefully! It can catch fire if left unattended. Don't let it get to the point it is smoking.
  • If you don't like mushrooms leave them out
  • If you adore mushrooms add a few more
  • Use a full bodied red wine like a pinot noir
  • Dredging the meat in the flour mixture helps the sauce to thicken as it simmers. If you'd like it thicker at the end of cooking remove the cover for the last 30 minutes and let the liquid reduce - but watch it carefully so it doesn't go dry. If it's still not thick enough for you add cornstarch as suggested in the recipe.

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 484kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 132mg | Sodium: 515mg | Potassium: 921mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 380IU | Vitamin C: 14.8mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 4.4mg

Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.

First published February 5, 2018. Last updated August 3, 2024,for better images and editorial content.

Beef tips and gravy over mashed potatoes with a fork in it.

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About Marye

Meet Marye Audet, a wizard in the kitchen and a storyteller at heart. Marye is like your eccentric but fun aunt who knows all the secret recipes and isn't afraid to spill them.

Comments

    4.66 from 81 votes (80 ratings without comment)

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  1. Deborah says

    February 04, 2021 at 7:48 am

    I make mine in a crockpot. I use cut up beef, stew meat, steak, roast, whatever I have. Then I use Pioneer brown gravy mix and the amount of water on the package. Cook on low all day. Served over rice, or mashed potatoes. So, so good.

    Reply
  2. Red87 says

    January 20, 2021 at 2:31 pm

    What's done with the chile?

    Reply
    • Marye says

      January 22, 2021 at 9:17 am

      It's added to the broth in step #14 and removed before serving.

      Reply
  3. Joe Johnston says

    November 01, 2018 at 11:31 am

    Where does the wine go into this recipe. I assume with the beef broth

    Reply
    • Marye Audet says

      November 08, 2018 at 9:41 pm

      yes. 🙂

      Reply
  4. sue | theviewfromgreatisland says

    February 23, 2018 at 7:36 pm

    This makes my mouth water, I can't wait to try it, I know how tender Certified Angus Beef is!

    Reply
    • Marye Audet says

      February 28, 2018 at 10:30 am

      Thanks Sue! I just love it!

      Reply
  5. Marisa Franca @ All Our Way says

    February 08, 2018 at 5:41 am

    5 stars
    Instead of the beef screaming, I think I would be loudly sighing in pleasure. I love the Texas flavors that go to a classic. And I would serve it with my poblano polenta. ?

    Reply
Marye Audet-White, founder of Restless Chipotle Media

Hey Y'all, I'm Marye

Welcome to my kitchen! ☕

NY Times bestselling author. 10 cookbooks. Mom of 8 kids. Homeschooling mom for 22 years. Addicted to Hallmark Christmas Movies. Collector of old cookbooks.

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